Not The End
by googons
Summary: this is how i see things could have ended better and still keep to the main plot line. OH! almost forgot... please review! EXA MXN...   charachters are Paolini's - COMPLETE!
1. Chapter 1: The Demise

**AN:  
><strong>this is my first so hope it's good! i have a lot written down already but it will take some time for me to type it into my computer... i will try my best to both continue writting and to upload but right now i have some exams so might take a while...

this first chapter is based on the story "forever" by PrincessAray although i trust you'll see the difference next chapter

**The Demise:**

While Saphira and Thorn occupied Shruikan Arya, with the speed and elegance that even some elves don't possess, ran up his neck to his head and with a single strike ran the Dauthader through Shruikan's eye. The giant dragon roared, in pain for a few seconds, and in all the confusion, no one heard a single muffled groan and the sound of a sword hitting the hard granite floor.

Arya was still holding the Dauthader in her hand when she heard Saphira roar in anger and pain. She turned just in time to see Galbatorix draw his sword out of Eragon's gut and Eragon falling to the ground.

"No." The small whisper of disbelief was the only thing she could do before her mind was assaulted. She took a quick look around and saw that all the other occupants of the room, even Nasuada, were assaulted mentally as well. She felt the faint presence of the mad Eldunari but mostly she felt Galbatorix's deadly presence. The attack was so intense that no one was even able to move.

She saw Galbatorix coming towards her out of the corner of her eye, ready to make her pay for killing his second dragon. He was just a few paces away, his sword held above his head ready to strike, when the mental attack stopped as abruptly as it started. She looked and saw Galbatorix's body fall to the ground, closely followed by his head. Behind him she saw Eragon barely standing, holding Brisinger in his hand, the blue blade smeared with blood.

He stood there panting for a couple of seconds, giving her a small, weak, smile before he fell to the ground, his blade falling out of arm's reach.

She ran to him and fell to her knees. The sight she saw scared her more than anything she's ever seen. Eragon's shirt was soaked with his own blood and a large wound was in his gut. She felt it on the other side of his body, just as big and bloody.

She looked up at his face and saw he still had the smile on his lips. His eyes focused on her and his smile grew a bit bigger as he said weakly, "We did it."

"Yes Eragon. **You** did it!" she said with an encouraging smile and a small laugh as she moved to rest his head on her knees.

She saw his eyes slightly lose focus and he was silent as he talked to Saphira, telling her not to worry and that everything will be alright.

'I know little one' she said sadly and flooded him with love and compassion through their mental link.

He came back to himself to see Arya looking at him with pain in her eyes, a single tear starting to form in her eye.

"I guess this is goodbye than" he said, his voice shaking with the pain of breathing, and leaving.

"No!" Arya said, resolve erasing all pain and sadness from her face. She gently laid his head down on the floor and then quickly turned to his side placing her hand over his stomach.

"No, don't. You don't have enough…"

"Hush!" she told him.

"Waise Heil!" she said and never has she meant it more.

The wound was beginning to close up, but far too slowly. She then felt a nudge in her mind from Saphira and then remembered all the others in the room. She quickly extended her mind to Saphira and the Eldunari and took from their energy to feed the spell, each one giving all he can.

But still she could not close it fast enough and she realized that Eragon was now in a pool of his own blood. Suddenly an idea struck her and she murmured another spell. She watched as the spell took effect and saw Eragon's blood start to flow back into his body. Suddenly she felt another foreign presence approach her mind. Fearing it was hostile, she attacked with ferocity and strength like never before, like an animal protecting its young.

'I want to help!' she heard Murtagh scream in the Ancient Language. She stopped the attack and allowed him to give her energy.

Slowly she saw the blood leave the floor and Eragon's clothes, and the wound closing up.

"I love you" she suddenly heard Eragon whisper, barely audible.

She looked in disbelief as he closed his eyes and stilled.

There was no stopping the tears that followed.

When the wound closed completely, the only sign of the deadly injury was a torn shirt.

Arya looked at Eragon, expecting him to wake up. To get up and bombard her with all the questions he could think of.

But he didn't move.

**AN: **

i know the cliffhanger sucks but the next chapter is up


	2. Chapter 2: Against All The Odds

**Against all the odds:**

Still refusing to believe what she saw, Arya started pumping his chest, trying to help his heart and get it working again, every now and then using her mouth to breath for him.

She was so focused on her work, lost in the rhythm and grief, that she didn't feel all the Eldunari grieving, the leader of the Varden crying, tears wetting her chains, the last living rider in all the land crying in pain and sadness at the loss of his brother as he silently went to free her, his red dragon humming in sadness and the blue dragon roaring and crying in agony at the loss of the partner of her mind and soul.

But Arya had eyes for no one but Eragon, her arms never stopping.

She started to feel around with her mind for every living creature she could find and transfer their energy to Eragon. The dragons, with and without bodies, Murtagh, Nasuada, a frightened servant fleeing the castle, a dying man on the walls, even the cats and dogs from nearby houses, the mice and bugs in the castle and the plants in the gardens. From all of them she took all the energy she could and gave it to Eragon.

After a couple of minutes that seemed like an entire lifetime she started hitting his chest, punching it harder and harder in desperation as she cried her heart out.

He was gone and there was no bringing him back.

She knew nothing but grief, her entire being filled with sadness and the pain of loss. The loss of Alagaesia's hero, the first rider in centuries, slayer of shades and killer of kings and her friend.

She was so lost in her pain that she didn't even notice the slight rising of the chest she was crying on.

"Arya" a small voice she knew whispered to her. She slowly raised her head, not believing her senses.

"Arya" she heard again, stronger this time.

"Eragon?" she said and everybody looked up.

She saw him move and this time felt the rising and falling of his chest.

"Eragon!" She was beside herself with joy and hugged him, holding him close, protecting him, never wanting to let him go.

She felt his arms lift and engulf her as Saphira roared with joy and embraced him through their mental link.

Nasuada was still crying but now they were tears of joy. Murtagh was punching the air in triumph beside her, supporting her so she wouldn't fall.

"Eragon" Arya whispered in his ear.

After a while she drew back, looking into his beautiful brown eyes.

"_Never_ do this to me again!"


	3. Chapter 3: Leave Taking

**AN: **

back by popular demand (i hope!)

might have gone a bit OOC with arya for a moment there...

**Leave taking:**

It was a week since Eragon killed Galbatorix and almost died, and he was still lying in bed.

It was in his opinion that he was really alright and didn't need any more rest, but Arya and Nasuada looked to it that he didn't leave his bed for too long and didn't over-exercise himself, sometimes making sure on their own. Initially Murtagh was on his side and thought that the two ladies were exaggerating, but after one look from Nasuada he fell silent and didn't involve himself in the matter again. Thought of it still made Eragon smile.

So there he was, reading in bed while everyone cleaned up the mess that he was, partially, responsible to.

Nasuada was trying to instill order in the firmer Empire, fighting the remaining soldiers, rebellions and so on.

Arya was helping around Uru'baen, now renamed back to Illirea, helping the elves and dwarves rebuild it.

Murtagh was at first disarming all the spells in the city, even the harmless looking ones, and freeing people from their oaths to the dead king with the use of the Name. On his first visit Murtagh taught Eragon the Name and they both agreed that no one else should know it. After that he started to fly around Alagaesia, doing the same in every city and helping the people there. At first he was treated with hate and caution by the people (of course no one did anything, not wanting to attack the man with the blood red dragon), but after a while people were less weary of him and allowed him, slowly, to help them, which earned him their trust.

All three of them came to give him company when they could and Orik came to visit every night when work at the wall ceased for the day.

It was on a sunny afternoon that Eragon was reading a book that a knock on the door was heard.

"Enter" he said, not taking his eyes off the book.

"Hello Eragon, how are you?" said a musical voice he immediately recognized as Arya's.

"As good as I was five days ago but I guess you still wouldn't let me out of here."

She pretended to be thinking, looking up at the ceiling.

"No" she said finally, sitting down at the end of the bed with an almost unnoticeable smile on her lips.

"You know Saphira is starting to get annoyed at being stuck here all week long." She was at first in favor of him resting were he can't get into more trouble but was now beginning to get eager to fly with him.

"She can go out, she's not the one who was stabbed in the stomach."

'I did but it's not the same as flying with him' Saphira told them both from outside the room.

Arya smiled at that. "Well I'm sure you could go out tomorrow. Maybe the day after that."

"I'll hold you to that."

They fell into silence as Arya was looking out the window, looking peaceful, and Eragon was looking hungrily at her.

"How are things with the elves?" he said breaking the silence.

"They're ok. Losing a queen is never easy" she said and a sad look came over her face.

Eragon tried to comfort her as much as he could over the past week but she kept to herself on that matter and he respected her choice. But he still made sure she knew he'll be there for here if she ever had need of him.

This time he thought to try and get a bit more out of her.

"Neither is losing a mother."

Arya flinched a bit at his words and Eragon thought he might have gone a bit too far, but then she started shaking and Eragon realized she was crying. He got up and sat next to her, putting her arm around her. After a few seconds she gave up and was crying freely and deeply into his shoulder. Eragon just sat there, holding her, whispering words of comfort.

A few minutes passed like that until Arya cried herself dry and freed herself from his embrace.

A few more minutes passed in silence as Arya regained her composure.

"I actually came to tell you something."

"Oh?"

"Yes. I will be leaving soon with the elves back to Ellesmera."

Eragon didn't know what to say. He really enjoyed her company this past week and he didn't want her to go, but he also knew that she had to.

"My people need help to try and rebuild ourselves and it's also my duty to accompany my mother's body back to Du Weldenvarden."

"I understand. Will you at least stay long enough for Nasuada's coronation or do you have to leave right away?" he asked hopefully.

"The coronation is in a few days' time, I might be able to delay our departure long enough but I can't promise anything." With that she got up.

"I have to go now and start preparing for our departure" she said and walked towards the door.

'Saphira, do you think we should…'

'Yes Eragon' she answered, knowing what he had in mind.

"Arya!" he called to her as she was about to close the door.

"Yes?" She opened the door and looked at him.

"Take the green egg with you, there's already a human rider, there should be an elven one too."

"Aren't there _two_ human riders?" she asked raising an eyebrow.

"I don't count, I'm somewhere in between…" he said with a smile.

She also smiled but then turned serious.

"Thank you Eragon" se said in the Ancient Language.

"You're welcome."

And with that she left.

**AN: **

so yeah! another one! please review! i really want to know what you guys (and gals!) think

don't know when next one will be up... might be tomorrow, might be two days, might be never! (though i doubt it...)


	4. Chapter 4: The Coronation

**AN:**

**ExA-mazing**: I actually thought that Arya taking the egg without talking to Eragon about it was a little less out of character. About Saphira knowing Eragon's alive – he died for a short while. About Murtagh, I know he shouldn't be accepted but I just didn't know what to do with it… I'll fix it though in the future.

Thanks for the reviews! Love them. Please keep them up!

I know that i left out some parts in between, I didn't see any reason to put them...

Eragon and Nasuada's speeches (you'll see...) might not be so good, i know... i'm not so good at this stuff... take the spirit of the words more than the words themselves, that's what i had in mind when i wrote it...

**The coronation:**

Eragon was standing in Galbatorix's old throne room for the first time since the battle. It was weird for him to be there again, he could still see in his mind Galbatorix standing over him, blood seeping through his hands that were clutching his stomach, but he thought that the coronation of Nasuada could very much serve as a healing experience for him.

And so there he was, standing there in his best cloths with all of the most important people in Alagaesia sitting in front of him. Nasuada was walking towards him, tall and proud more than ever before, her sleeves cut short above her elbows to show the scars she acquired during the trial of the long knives.

She knelt as she reached him.

"People of Alagaesia!" he started. He worked on this speech longer than he cared to admit and the result was not as good as he'd hoped, but it was the best he could do.

"We've been through some tough times. War, loss and sadness have been all we've known for a long time. But today, we start a new age, an age of peace and joy!

"I have no doubt in my heart that there's no one more fitting to lead Alagaesia into this age than you Nasuada, daughter of Ajihad. You who has given, sacrificed and lost so much for this cause and without you we probably wouldn't have succeeded.

"Nasuada" Eragon continued after a short pause. "Do you swear to serve Alagaesia to the best of your ability? To rule with the justice, wisdom and compassion that you have shown in the past, Until you are no longer capable to?"

"I do!" she said loudly and confidently, resolve filling her eyes.

"Then rise, Queen Nasuada of Alagaesia!"

There was a loud round of applause and everyone were on their feet, clapping and cheering like madman.

Nasuada turned around to face her people and started to walk out of the hall, Eragon and Murtagh, who was just behind Eragon the entire time, just a pace behind her, walking side by side. Eragon could see a proud look on his brother's face but he could also see something else there, a sense of longing that he knew all too well himself. He made a mental note to himself to talk to him about it later.

As they reached their destination, a big balcony facing the entire city, they were greeted by an even greater round of applause and cheering that didn't seem like it was going to fade anytime soon.

With one monstrous roar from Saphira, who was waiting for them on the balcony with Thorn, the crowd quieted.

"People of Alagaesia!" Nasuada said, her voice magically enhanced to be heard all over the city and even in some of the surrounding settlements.

"These have been hard and trying times for all of us and I'm afraid there's still some hard times ahead of us. But no matter how hard it might be, as long as we stand together, we will prevail!"

There was more applause at that and even more when she came down from the balcony and walked among the people who came from all across the land to see their new queen. As she walked Murtagh always trailed behind her, always smiling but keeping guard. The people were accepting his presence now which was a good sign but were still weary of him and kept their distance, which was just fine with him at the moment.

Eragon was walking with them as well, a few paces behind Murtagh, watching the crowd. Most people didn't pay much attention to him, which was unusual but welcome. It was while he was scanning the crowd that he saw a hooded figure with raven hair sliding from under its hood looking at him and leaning on a building's side, away from the rest of the crowd. The figure was tall and slender and he realized it was probably a woman. Just as he reached this conclusion the woman lifted the hood from her face and he was looking at Arya. Eragon flashed her a smile and she flashed one back at him as he started to make his way to her through the crowd,

I thought the elves left two days ago" he said when he reached her.

"They did, but with all the commotion created by the coronation it wasn't so hard for a single magic using elf to enter the city unnoticed" she explained.

"I wanted to see the coronation and say goodbye properly" she said foreseeing the next question.

"And what did you think of the coronation?"

"I think she'll make a very good queen and that we have some good times to look for."

"That we do" Eragon agreed.

"I also thought that blue really suites you, you should wear it more often" she added, amusement clear on her face at the look of Eragon's baffled face.

"Anyway," she said changing the subject. "I must return to my people now."

"Ok" was all he could think of saying. He didn't want her to go and was afraid he'll never see her again.

"Do not worry, oh mighty Eragon Kingkiller" she said as if she could read his mind. "We will see each other again."

"Of course we will" he said more confidently than he felt.

She then did something she never did before and hugged him. It only lasted for a couple of seconds, but for him it felt like an eternity. Her warm body was pressed against his and he could feel every curve of her body and smell the ever present smell of crushed pine needles from her hair.

She broke the hug and then walked away with a wave.

Eragon was left there alone and in complete shock for a few minutes reliving every moment of the hug and the touch of her body against his.

'Eragon!' The mental shout and nudge brought him back from day dreaming and he could feel Saphira's amusement through their mental link. The tips of his ears reddened in embarrassment.

'Coming Saphira' he said and walked back to the procession that moved on without him.

Later that day, in bed, Eragon would lie awake for hours thinking about what happened, and what must come.

**AN:**

Nothing to say… hope you enjoyed it and please review!

The next week will be difficult updating wise but once I get through it the rest will probably be a walk in the park! You should know that I almost finished writing the whole story in my notebook (one chapter missing…) and that now it's just a question of typing it…


	5. Chapter 5: Heart To Heart

**AN:**

**Restrained. Freedom**: Funny you should say that! I think (hope) you'll enjoy the next one...

**BrightWatcher: **This story is more about just rewriting the ending (although it started out as just rewriting the departure…) I'll probably write more after I finish this one and they will have more story… I know it seems a bit rushed but this was just me not wanting to rewrite it too much (I also didn't have the book with me when I was writing so I didn't want to write too much from memory and make mistakes so I just put a short reminder).

Thanks for all the reviews! Keep it up!

**Heart to heart:**

It's been a week since the coronation and Eragon was kept constantly busy. There was work to be done in Illirea, Keeping the peace, rebuilding it and exploring the castle for treasures hidden by Galbatorix and forgotten from living memory. Exploring the castle was particularly enjoyable to him for he found all the things he found very interesting. His favorite was an entire stash of rider's swords, hundreds of them in all colors and shapes.

He's been looking for a chance to talk with Murtagh ever since the coronation but either he was busy or Murtagh was away on one task or the other. It was with surprise then that he saw the unmistakable blood-red form of Thorn when he walked to the dining hall for lunch.

Murtagh also appeared to have noticed Saphira for he hailed him and invited him to come sit with him, invitation Eragon gladly accepted.

"Hello brother! How goes your day?"

"Busy like yesterday but it's good to finally be out of bed" Eragon replied.

"It's good to see you out of bed!"

While the two brothers talked, their dragons ate together, talking between themselves.

The two brothers sat eating in silence for a while before it was broken.

"I've actually been looking for a chance to talk to you" Eragon said.

"Well in that case fire away! It's the freest I'll be for the coming weeks, I'm leaving to the south tomorrow."

Eragon sat thinking on the best way to approach the delicate subject for a few seconds.

"I've noticed something different about you lately" he finally said.

"Well, do you think it might be the fact that I'm finally free from Galbatorix entirely?" he asked.

"It's more than that. It's the way you behave around a certain someone."

"What are you talking about?" Murtagh sounded suspicious.

"You seem to be a lot happier in the company of a certain person." Eragon really didn't want to say her name in case he'll offend or anger him.

"I have no idea what you're talking abo…" but he was cut off.

'Oh for heaven's _sake_ Murtagh!' Thorn said jumping into the conversation. 'You know as well as I do what he's talking about and _who_ he's talking about and if you don't than you're not my rider anymore!' Murtagh was looking astounded at his dragon for saying that and Eragon was smiling to himself but other than that didn't say a word.

"Ok… What about it?" Murtagh said after he tore his gaze from Thorn.

"Well, what are you going to do about it?"

"I don't know."

'Murtagh if you don't do anything about it two things are going to happen.  
>'First, I will be forced to kiss Nasuada myself because I won't be able to take your longing any longer and then I'll sit on you for an entire day for making me make a fool of myself!'<p>

After this Eragon just couldn't stop himself from letting out a small burst of laugher that earned him a dark look from Murtagh, one he shared with Thorn. Saphira was just sitting beside them laughing to herself and enjoying the show.

"Anyway!" Eragon tried to steer the conversation back on track.

"What?"

"What are you gonna do?"

"Nothing! She's mortal, I'm not. It will just be too painful to spend an eternity missing her…"

"You'll do that in any-case, at least that way you won't have to spend eternity also wondering what could have been."

There was a long silence as Murtagh thought over what Eragon just said.

"But what if she turns me down?" he asked desperately.

'Murtagh you're looking for excuses. You won't know until you try' Thorn answered.

"Ok!" he said after a long pause, lifting his arms and dropping them at his side as if beaten. "I'll see if she'll have me" he mumbled to more to himself than to anyone else. "Do you have at least some advice to give me?"

"Murtagh, you're my brother and I'll help you in any way I can, but I really feel that advice from me might not be the best considering my history with these things."

"Right" Murtagh said with a chuckle.

The two of them and Thorn passed almost an entire hour throwing ideas back and forth, each passing minute bringing them to more and more ridiculous ideas.

'If I might help,' Saphira said after she's had just about enough of this conversation. 'Seeing as I'm the only female here and apparently the only one who's thinking strait' she said looking at Thorn – his last idea was to sculpture her features onto the most beautiful rock they could find and, for lack of a better word, kidnap her there.

'Wouldn't it be a lot more simple to simply come forward with it and ask her? From what I know of her she's not exactly one to be beating around the bush.'

Without a better idea to go by they decided to follow her plan.


	6. Chapter 6: Confrontation

**AN:**

**RedDevils: **thank you so much!

**Confrontation:**

"Enter" came the voice on the other side of the door and he entered the study.

After his talk with Eragon, Murtagh was practically pushed by both him and Torn to Nasuada's study.

"Why now?" he asked desperately.

"Because you said yourself you're going south tomorrow! These things should not be delayed!" Eragon answered with another shove.

'He's right you know. What's more, Nasuada is a very powerful and, from what I understand, attractive young woman. She might be taken by the time you get back!' Thorn said smugly and Murtagh had a feeling he shared this with Eragon for he could see his brother hiding a smile and hear Saphira making a weird rumbling noise in her stomach, one he associated with laughter.

And so he was pushed and pulled all the way up to Nasuada's study, encouragements flowing from Eragon and Thorn's mouths with the occasional tease.

"Murtagh! What a nice surprise!" Nasuada said, pulling him from his memories, and got up to great him.

'You have no idea!' Thorn said in his mind and Murtagh's stomach did a back-flip.

"Are you ok? You look a bit sick"

'More like love sick!'

'Stop it!' Murtagh told his dragon mentally. 'How am I supposed to do this if you won't let me focus?'

'You're right. I'm sorry' and with that Thorn withdrew from his mind but still paid attention to every detail through his eyes and ears.

"I'm fine" he said answering her question. "I'm actually better than I can ever remember being."

"Well, I guess being free will have that effect on anybody."

"While that might be true, that's only part of the picture."

"Oh? And what might the full picture look like?" she said, her interest clearly rising.

"Well, you see, during my captivity I started to think that maybe that's who I really am, my father's son through and through" he began. "But then something happened, someone from a time I nearly forgot entered my life again and reminded me of another man. A man who hated Galbatorix, a man who would have done anything to be free of him, even if it meant to run away from everything he knew and had only for the small chance to do something against Galbatorix.

"That man would've punched me if he could see me back then" he said with a small smile on his face.

"I remembered how I was before the twins got me and realized how close I was to becoming a man my former self would have hated with all his heart.

"But there was another thing, the same thing that made my true name change."

Nasuada was mesmerized, unable to move or speak for fear that the charm would be broken and he would stop talking.

"It was a realization" he went on. "A realization that I no longer cared only for Thorn and myself. That there was another person in my life that was worth more than life itself."

There was a long pause after that and Murtagh thought for a second that he won't be able to go on.

'You can do this' Thorn said encouragingly through their link.

"Who was…"

"It was you" Murtagh said, answering her unfinished question. "I opened up to you like I've never opened up to anyone other than Thorn. I fell in love with you and now I can't picture my life without you. You are, and always will be, a part of me, and if you'll have me, I will spend the rest of eternity trying to make you happy."

There was a long moment of silence after Murtagh finished talking. Nasuada was looking straight at him with an unwavering , piercing, gaze and Murtagh, unable to look at these brown eyes, looked at the floor. He could faintly feel Thorn's excitement, but it was only a background noise for him. His entire being was focused on this room, on this second and the woman he couldn't stop thinking about.

"Murtagh" he heard her say after what seemed like forever but couldn't be more than a few seconds. But he still couldn't bring himself to look at her.

He heard a rustle of cloth and assumed Nasuada was moving. He then felt the soft touch of a finger under his chin, lifting it. She was right in front of him. He looked at her face, the most perfect face he's ever seen, and traced every line, hoping to memorize her every curve.

As he looked at her he could see tears forming in her eyes and his heart sank.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said anything. I…" She put her finger on his lips and he immediately fell quiet.

And then she kissed him. And then he kissed her and the world fell away. Nothing existed other than the feel of her lips on his, the touch of her hair as he cupped her head, bringing her even closer to him, and her soft dress under his rough hand as he held her lower back.

He couldn't remember where he was and he couldn't care less. All he wanted was to never let her go.

After what seemed like at least a few sunlit days, she pulled herself out of his lips. Murtagh was unconsciously following her lips as she pulled away so it was a surprise for him when he found himself leaning towards her when he opened his eyes.

"You worry too much" she told him with a smile.

'HA! You've no idea. If it wasn't for us he wouldn't have said anything for a few good years for fright of rejection!' Thorn said bursting with excitement and joy for his rider.

"US?" she asked Murtagh mortified.

'Yes, _us_' Saphira answered.

"So much for keeping this low profile…" Murtagh mumbled.

'Don't worry brother… You can count on us!' and with that all three of them withdrew from their minds, giving them some long sought alone time with each other.

**AN:**

So this was hard to write! I really enjoyed writing Thorn! It was fun… I hope I did a good job… tell me what you think! (*cough* review *cough*).


	7. Chapter 7: A Taste Of His Own Medicine

**A taste of his own medicine:**

It's been two weeks since the coronation and two weeks since Eragon last saw Arya. He had Roran Katrina, Murtagh and Nasuada to keep him company, and Saphira of course, but it wasn't the same. He wanted to talk to her, see her… just _be___with her.

"You know you could write her" Murtagh told him.

"How did you… But of course" he said turning to Saphira.

'What? You wouldn't listen to me, I thought you might listen to him.'

"I could write on your behalf if you want" Murtagh said jokingly.

"I don't need you to write for me" he said defensively. "I just need you to tell me what to write" he admitted and Murtagh laughed.

"It seems that the only one in our family who knows how to court a woman, or in your case and elf, is Roran! Lucky bustard" he added and laughed.

"I'm not courting Arya!" Eragon burst out.

'Eragon, don't insult our intellect with such a weak lie.' Saphira had to answer because both Murtagh and Thorn were too busy laughing and, in Murtagh's case, gasping for air.

"Eragon," Murtagh said after he regained his breath. "You're the one who told me these things 'should not be delayed.' I guess you found out it's easier said than done, didn't you?"

"For your information I _did_ talk to her and she wouldn't have me."

"That was before you killed Galbatorix, when you were young, inexperienced and, let's admit it, a bit drunk. It was also before the coronation" Murtagh replied.

"Must you tell him everything?" he asked Saphira.

'Only what he needs to know in order to help end this once and for all' she retorted.

"So… Are you going to write to her or will I be forced to forge your signature?"

"You wouldn't!"

"Oh but I would brother" Murtagh put an emphasis on that word. "And I would be careful if I were you, I know how to sound clingy and you don't want Arya to think that you wrote the letter!" Eragon suspected that the threat had a base of truth.

"But she's in Du Weldenvarden! How am I supposed to send her a letter?"

"Eragon, you're a rider… I'm sure you'll figure something out."

…..

After Murtagh wouldn't let go, Eragon retired to his room, got a piece of paper, a feather and ink and sat down.

For a while he couldn't think what to write and just sat staring at the paper.

And then he just started to write.

_Dear Arya_

_It's been too long since we've last spoken and I miss you dearly._

_I hope you're well and that we'll meet each other again soon. Maybe you could come to Illirea or I'll come to Ellesmera._

_Yours always_

_Eragon_

It was short, shorter than he would have liked, but he didn't feel that what he really wanted to say was fitting for a letter, especially if it could easily be intercepted.

He folded the letter and looked out the window, thinking. After a few seconds he saw a glint of green in the sky. He tried to look closer but it was either too far or too small to be seen in detail, even with his excellent vision, so he cast a spell to improve his sight. What he saw put such a smile on his face that even Saphira felt the need to grin.

"Ignasia" he said and the green dot got closer and closer until a green boat made of grass floated through his open window and landed on his open palm.

He looked at it for some time casting a spell to tell him where the little boat has been. He was amazed to find out that the boat already managed to travel all across Alagaesia from the northern parts of the Spine near Carvahall to Surda.

He opened his letter and added another line

_P.S. I think you'll find the boat familiar._

With that he folded the letter, secured it onto the ship and whispered a spell to guide it to Arya.

He watched as the small boat sailed away to the north east for a few minutes after it was no longer visible in the darkening sky and then went down to the city to continue his chores.

**AN:**

I really like this chapter… I hope you enjoyed the humor in the beginning!

Sorry for the lame letter… I didn't know what else to write there that wouldn't be either not fitting or changing the main direction I'm going with… But hey! Eragon's not too great with these things if the books are anything to go by! So maybe it's just that I'm so connected to the character?

Anyway… love the reviews! More please!

P.S. about the title. I didn't know how to name this chapter and then I got this idea and decided to roll with it, knowing that if I will get a better name it will be after some long thinking which I can't afford right now (Applied Mathematics requires sacrifice!)


	8. Chapter 8: Happily Ever After

**AN:**

**Restrained. Freedom:** that's exactly what I had in mind!

I really love the reviews guys! Keep it up!

And now for the main event:

**Happily ever after:**

It was a quiet, warm, night and Murtagh and Nasuada were lying on the plateau above Illirea watching the darkening sky. The rock was covered with grass and beds of flowers of many kinds and was the perfect place for a couple of lovers to spend the evening. Murtagh and Nasuada were between two flower beds and in the light of the setting sun you could not ask for a more beautiful scene.

Murtagh was lying on his back, his head resting on his left hand, and Nasuada was lying pressed up to him, her head resting on his right shoulder. His right hand was holding hers, their fingers intertwined, and he could feel her snuggled into his side.

As it was, their relationship was still a secret and therefore they could not publicly show their affection to one another. Nasuada was still as busy as she was the day after Galbatorix was felled and Murtagh was still flying around the country from time to time and helping around the city the remaining time and the had very little time together during the day. The solution was their evening meetings and Murtagh sneaking into her chambers when she was supposed to be working. It wasn't the best solution, but it was something.

"Are you cold?" he asked as a breeze came.

"No, I'm fine" she said but she still snuggled even closer to him and he smiled. She turned to lie on her side, her right arm, now free of his, sprawled on his chest and his arm was now holding her closer to him, protecting her from the rest of the world. She was now looking straight at him and, after a few more seconds of looking at the sky, he looked back at her sinking in the depth of her brown eyes.

"Have I told you already how beautiful you are?" he asked her after a few minutes of silence.

A smile appeared on her face, God how he loves this smile!

"Yes you have, on many occasions."

"Well then you can add another one to the list." She laughed at that.

'Are you sure about this?' Murtagh asked Thorn, showing doubt for the first time.

'No,' his partner of heart and soul answered simply. 'But you are.'

After that his mind was made. He thanked Thorn, who wished him good luck, and turned his full attention to the task at hand.

"Nasuada, I have something to tell you."

She didn't respond but he could see her eyes getting more serious. She was now listening closely to every word he had to say.

He freed himself from their embrace and turned to her leaning on his elbow. She leaned back on her elbows to see him better but other than that did nothing.

"The past couple of months have been the happiest of my life. You're the person I never knew I needed and I can't – _we_ can't – imagine it without you." A smile crept on her face.

"Close your eyes" he told her. She raised a suspicious eyebrow but complied.

"Open them" he said after a short while.

What her eyes saw took her breath away.

Before her stood Murtagh on his knees, holding in his hands the most beautiful ring she's ever seen.

The ring was golden with a blood-red ruby, an exact match to Thorn's scales, on it. On first look it looked quite simple, but then, when she looked closer, she could see patterns in silver. Images.

There was one of two people, who she recognized as herself and Murtagh, kissing and holding each other. She recognized the scene as their first kiss. She could see some of the study in the background but mostly it was the passion of the kiss combined with the slight surprised Murtagh. The image made her grin.

The second was of her face. It was a near exact replica of her face, with every curve and line present in silver threads thinner than a human hair, finer than the best of fabrics. She could see all of his love and affection towards her in this image. It was an image of how he saw her and she could see that he loved everything about her in the image, from her curvy face to her warm eyes, all present in the picture.

The third and last image was the most amazing of all and the most beautiful she's ever seen.

At first it was just a blank part of the ring but it was clear to her that it was a space reserved for another image. As she watched and wondered if maybe he'll add it later on, silver threads, all thin and pure and perfect, formed a picture before her eyes. At first it was too hard to tell what the picture was but as she continued to watch she could recognize the picture as that very moment. She could see herself leaning on her elbows on the grass with Murtagh kneeling next to her, with the ring in his hands. She could see individual blades of grass and flower beds around them just as they were in real life. After a few more moments of staring and marveling at its beauty and wonder she realized that the picture was probably taken from Thorn who was laying a few paces away, watching the scene closely.

She continued to watch the ring, caught by its beauty, until she was pulled back to reality by Murtagh.

"Nasuada daughter of Ajihad, will you marry me?"

As he waited for an answer Murtagh thought he was going to die from anticipation, excitement and fear. Her face was filled with surprise but he couldn't read anything else from it. He could feel Thorn's anxiously watching her just as he was.

"Yes!" she finally said and threw her arms around him, pulling him with her to the ground where they rolled around, holding each other and laughing, until they hit Thorn.

'Congratulations both of you! Welcome to our little weird family Nasuada.'

"Thank you Thorn"

"Give me your hand" Murtagh said, he wanted to make this official.

She did and he took it and very gently slid the ring onto her finger, making her his fiancé.

**AN:**

This chapter was originally shorter but then I decided to add on the description of the ring and a few other things and it got longer… I think it's a change for the better but tell me what you think!

P.S. If anyone has a problem with this "rushed" engagement then rest assured, the next chapter (that will probably be posted tomorrow) will have the answer ! (a short one maybe but an answer none the less and a good one in my opinion…)

See you next time!


	9. Chapter 9: Pen Pals

**AN:**

So it's a later update than usual… It's like 1 am but seeing as it's mainly just copying what I've already written (apart from some parts that I'm adding in between) I decided to update today!

**RedDevils: **Thanks for the compliment! I appreciate it!

**Restrained. Freedom: **As long as you enjoyed it I'm happy!

**Ally1998: **I'll see what I can do about that ring…

So this is the next chapter… some of it might seem a bit OOC, but I just wanted to show those feelings that I'm pretty sure she's having anyway, if not in those exact words.

Enjoy!

**Pen pals:**

"Congratulations!"

"Thank you so much Arya! It will make it so much easier if the other races will support this" Nasuada replied through the mirror.

"And what about the dwarves?"

"I've talked to Orik. He didn't like it at first but I got him to not see this as a reason to start a new war so that's good" Nasuada said wearily. It was clear to Arya that the new queen has lost some sleep over this and that it was tearing her apart, choosing between love and politics. She admired the woman for her courage to choose as she did and decided to help her in any way she possibly could.

"You should ask Eragon to talk to him and try to work out an arrangement so that he'll come as well. It will look bad if he doesn't and I'm sure Eragon would gladly do it."

"That's what I thought too. I'll talk to him later, he's pretty busy right now." Arya waited for a few seconds to see if more information would come. When it did not she asked.

"So when is it?"

"The wedding? It should be a week after the full moon two months from now."

"That's close!"

"Yeah… No reason to delay though is there?" she asked with a chuckle.

"I guess not" Arya had to admit.

"So we'll see you at the wedding?"

"Absolutely. But for now I must go."

"Of course" Nasuada said and with that the conversation was over and Arya ended the spell.

She was happy for Nasuada and Murtagh. Both of them had been through much and deserved love and companionship. She remembered how they grew closer during the time in Tronjheim and decided they were a right match.

But still, as much as she was happy for both of them she still felt a small prick ion the heart at the thought that she had no one to spend her eternal life with. All the magic she had could not change the fact that she was alone.

'Who was that?' Firnen asked.

_Well, not _completely_ alone_, she thought to herself.

'That was Nasuada. Remember I told you about her?'

'Oh right! The dark-skin-proud-two-legs!' he said with pride at his ability to remember her so well.

'That's the one' Arya said with a smile.

'What's a wedding?' he asked, pushing his head through the door. He was no longer a hatchling and was too big to fit into her house but he was still learning about the doings of the two-legs, the humans dwarves and Urgals in particular for the were not around like the elves.

'It's a human ceremony where they recognize each other as mates for the rest of their lives' Arya explained.

'Do elves have weddings?' he continued his inquiry.

'No. Elves are immortal and so such a commitment would be too great, although we do have mate and in some cases they do last for a very long time, sometimes even to the end of our lives. In any case, we elves simply don't feel the need to declare ourselves as 'mates for life', if we love someone then we become mates for as long as we still feel that way.'

'Did you ever have a mate?' Firnen asked, clearly interested.

'No' she said simply after a short pause in which she felt that prick in her heart again.

'Then who was the Faolin person?'

'He was merely a friend. A close friend, but nothing more. We knew each other from when I was no more than a child; he was like a brother to me.' _And he's dead because of _me she thought. A tear threatened to spill from her eye but she quickly controlled it and kept it at bay.

'So we're going?' he asked trying to draw her from this topic he could feel was causing her distress.

'Yes we are' Arya returned, her smile lighting her face.

'And I will get to meet Saphira and Thorn?' he asked, getting excited despite of himself.

'You sure will. And Eragon as well.' She felt a tingle of excitement at the thought of seeing him again.

'You mean your brown-hair-brown-eyes-pointy-ears-two-legs?'

'He's not mine!' Arya said offended.

'But you wish he was!' Firnen replied making his rumbling laughter she knew too well from Saphira. Arya had no answer for that.

'Have you written back to him yet?'

'No Firnen, I haven't.' She felt ashamed.

'Why?' She was starting to get annoyed at his inquiry.

'Because I don't know what to tell him! I can't tell him about you in a letter, it will be unfitting and it could be intercepted, and so I can't tell him why I can't tell him why I haven't answered his letter!'

'It's better to tell him you can't tell him why than to say nothing.'

'But what if…'

'_And_' Firnen cut her off, 'from what I've seen of your memories of him he will understand.'

Arya tried to think of a counter argument but was forced to agree with her dragon.

'Do you have any idea what to tell him?'

'Exactly what you told me' he said as if it was obvious.

'Fine!' she said defeated and sat down to write her letter.

After a throwing a few balled up papers away and scratching out some words she finally held up the best letter she could think of at the moment.

'What do you think?' she asked her dragon.

'Well, it's not your best work…' he joked, 'but it will do. I think he'll be more interested in a response than a work of art.'

Agreeing, Arya reached out her hand and grasped the grass boat that was floating around her room, the same one that Eragon sent her. She knew she should have set it free after it arrived but it was a reminder of Eragon that she could not easily let go of.

She attached the letter to the boat and after staring at it for a few moments walked to the open window. She whispered a few words in the Ancient Language, first to guide the ship to Eragon and then to send it off to continue its traveling of the land after it delivered the message.

She watched the boat float into the air until it was lost behind the many trees of Ellesmera. After it was gone from sight she slowly turned around and prepared herself for another day of training with Firnen and some boring chores.

**AN:**

Yes I know the title isn't the best but it's all I could come up with at this hour so please forgive me…

To those of you who are wondering at the contents of the letter, you'll see it next chapter. Right now it's not really what I could have hoped for (I already apologized on a previous chapter that I'm not good at this…) but I'll see if I can improve it when I write it down…

Next chapter will be a big confrontation! Not the violent kind but unpleasant none the less… what is it you ask? You'll just have to wait for the next chapter to find out!  
>It's probably the longest chapter yet so it might take me two days to copy it seeing as I'm lazy, but you never know! I might just find myself with nothing to do and free time on my hands...<p>

As always, reviews would be most appreciated!


	10. Chapter 10: A Woman's Perspective

**AN:**

Woo-ho! Two digit chapter!

**Restrained. Freedom: **no I'm not quite finished with this story yet! I'll tell you when I am but when this one is over I'll probably continue with other stories that will continue this one! More details on that will come in the final chapter.  
>Glad you like the chapter! And I totally agree! Arya not writing him is very OOC for her, I think.<p>

**ExA-mazing: **What I meant by "to spend her eternal life with" was Arya's eternal life. I will not be elaborating too much on MurtaghXDwarves relationship in this story… I just don't want to open this Pandora's box…

So it turns out that I did have some time on my hands that I didn't know what to do with since I finished catching up to another fan-fic (**Legacy: Book IV** by IF-HBommb if anyone's interested).

**A woman's perspective:**

The engagement was a big surprise to everyone but less so for Eragon seeing as he was one of the few people who knew about the tow's relationship. Even so, Eragon was still surprised it was so quick, and even more surprising was the fact that the wedding was due in a couple of months.

"What's the rush?" he asked them both when they told him the news.

"I just don't want to miss any minute with her!" Murtagh answered and then kissed her. She returned the kiss passionately and Eragon couldn't help but smile at their happiness.

It was nice to see them both so happy after all they've both been through but there was a small part of him that felt envious, even jealous.

Arya still didn't return an answer to his letter and it's been more than two months.

'What could be wrong?' he asked Saphira.

'I don't know little one but I'm sure she has a perfectly good reason to not answering' she said confidently. 'Just remember that she's one of our closest friends and trust her judgment to do what's right even if you can't see her reasons.'

'I do trust her!' Eragon said defensively. 'But what could be happening that could prevent her from writing a simple letter?' he asked desperately after a short pause.

'Off the top of my head? She can be either under siege, her hands were cut off, she forgot how to write or she just never wants to see you again… Although it's probably not the latter.' Amusement was clear in her voice.

'Very funny' he said and despite himself a small smile crept to his lips.

'I thought so.' She said and he laughed at that.

They were walking to Roran and Katrina's temporary home in the city for lunch, tea and some company. They would have usually flown there but Eragon felt like taking a walk in the city and Saphira agreed to, as she put it, "going there the wrong way."

As they followed a curve in the road their house came into view and with it came a picture of Roran laughing and holding Ismira in his hands, throwing her in the air and catching her to the sound of her rolling laughter. He was so caught up that he didn't notice Eragon and Saphira until they were close enough to feel the ground shaken by Saphira's giant feet. When he did notice them he raised his hand in greeting and called Katrina who came out just as Eragon and Saphira were at the house.

"Hello to the happy family!" Eragon greeted.

"Hello to the mighty Eragon Kingkiller and Saphira Firetongue!" Roran responded.

"And how is my favorite niece?" he asked.

"She's your _only_ niece Eragon" Katrina pointed out with a smile.

"That doesn't mean she can't be my favorite!"

"And what will happen when you have other nieces? Or a nephew? There might soon be many of them what with the wedding so close" Roran said.

"Then they will also be my favorite ones!" he said and took Ismira in his arms.

"Come sit! I'll bring the food" Katrina said and went back inside only to come out with some meat and an assortment of cooked vegetables and soap for Eragon.

"I thought I told you to sit!" she said when she saw him still standing.

"Sorry, I was busy" he said and walked away from Saphira with Ismira still in his hands. "She wanted to say hello" he explained.

"Who did? Saphira or Ismira?" she asked.

'Both' Saphira answered to great laughter from everyone.

And so they all sat down to eat, talking about this and that all the while.

"But you must have known there was _something_ going on between them!" Roran said when they finally reached the topic of the wedding after the food was finished and Katrina brought out the tea.

"We're the ones who talked him into it!" he said proudly.

'Us and Thorn' Saphira corrected him.

"Right" Eragon said. "But the fact remains that we promised not to say anything to anyone" Eragon continued.

"Still could have told us" Roran retorted.

"That would have been telling someone" Eragon pointed out.

"You should be glad he's good at keeping a secret Roran! Otherwise we would have been in serious trouble in Carvahall" Katrina pointed out.

"Yeah… It's a good thing we managed to avoid _that_!" Roran said and they all laughed.

"And what about you?" Katrina asked Eragon.

"What about me?" he asked.

"Well" she said with a tone as if she was explaining the simplest thing on earth. "Is there someone in particular you've got your eye on? Because even if you don't I'm sure it will still be easier for you to find a woman who wants you than it will to take a walk around the city." Roran and Saphira laughed heartily at that.

"Well…" he stuttered.

"Oh my does he have his eye on someone!" Roran said while fighting for air. "I'd say he's got both eyes on someone and only for that someone when she's around!"

'He even uses my eyes sometimes.' Now Roran was laughing so hard he almost fell from his chair.

"Well first of all that's no reason to laugh at him!" Katrina said giving her husband a dark look that only half managed to calm him down. "And secondly, who is it?"

"It's…" He couldn't bring himself to say it.

"I would much rather have this from you but I will ask Saphira if I have to" she warned him.

"It's Arya" Eragon said quietly, so quietly that between Roran's laughter, Saphira's rumbling sound and Ismira clapping her hands at nothing in particular, Katrina couldn't hear him.

"It's who now?"

"Arya" he said loudly enough for her to hear but no one else.

"Oh!" Katrina said surprised. "And how long have you…"

'For about as long as he knew her' Saphira answered the unfinished question. 'I suspect that even before she was conscious.' Eragon's ears turned red and he looked down at the floor.

"If you two can't be helpful then I'm afraid I will have to ask you to leave!" Katrina said to both Roran and Saphira.

"Sorry" they both said.

"And no laughing!" she warned.

"So you like her, correct?" Katrina continued after making sure her message sank in.

"Yes" Eragon said weakly.

"And she likes you! What's the problem?" she asked as if she was missing something.

"What do you mean 'she likes me'?" Eragon asked, suddenly intrigued.

"Well, I haven't seen too much of her but I can tell you that there's a definite difference in her behavior when she's around you. A lingering look here. A quick glance there. You just have to look for it" she said simply and made it sound as if it was the simplest thing in the world.

"Well then how come she turned me down on more than one occasion?" he asked, genuinely looking for an answer.

'Oromis already answered that for you Eragon' Saphira said. 'She didn't want to distract you because you were too important.'

"Have you made any recent attempts?" Roran asked.

"Not really…" He admitted. "I just don't want to ruin our friendship in case she turns me down again! Anyway, I did write her a letter more than two months ago."

"What did it say?" Katrina said raising an eyebrow.

"That I wanted to see her and that I miss her."

"And what did she say?" Roran asked.

"Nothing yet. She hasn't returned my letter yet" he said lowering his gaze as a lump formed in his throat.

Katrina looked at him with pity in her eyes and Ismira, sensing her uncle's distress, tried to free herself from her mother's arms and get to Eragon.

Only Roran was staring into space, a small smile creeping to the edge of his mouth.

"Are you sure?" he asked and everyone looked at him with a surprised expression except for Ismira who was crawling across the table to Eragon.

"Of course I'm sure!" he said, wondering at his brother's stupidity as he picked Ismira up. "How could I not know that?"

Roran didn't answer but an answer soon came in the form of a nudge on the back of his head and Ismira laughing and pointing to something behind him.

He turned around to see what it was and was met with a small boat made of grass blades with what looked like a piece of paper tucked next to the mast. Suddenly all the uncertainty he felt before was lifted only to be replaced with by excitement and dread at the contents of the letter.

He handed Ismira back to her mother, despite the former's complaints, and reached out for the boat. He took the letter and opened it after a deep breath.

_Dear Eragon_

_I'm sorry I haven't written sooner but I was too busy and didn't know how to put in writing what I wanted to say in person._

_I won't be able to come to Illirea for a while and you shouldn't come to Ellesmera for I'm too busy at the moment and have things that need to be done. However, I will come to the wedding and I hope we could talk before it, I have something to tell you but it's not fitting for a letter._

_I will contact you closer to the wedding to tell you when exactly I will be arriving._

_Until then, take care of yourself, give my best to Nasuada and Murtagh and to Saphira as well._

_Yours truly_

_Arya_

Eragon read the letter over a couple of times to make sure he wasn't missing anything. _There is a reason she hasn't written_ he thought.

'Told you' Saphira commented.

'Yes you did' Eragon admitted.

"What does it say?" Katrina said after Eragon said nothing for a few full minutes.

"That she'll come to the wedding and that she wants to see me before the wedding to tell me something."

"Any idea what it is?"

"Nope."

"Did she say why she hasn't answered sooner?"

"Not exactly… It was vague, but I think it has something to do with what she wants to tell me…"

"Well then you'll just have to wait for the wedding!"

"Yeah, right."

Eragon knew that it would be very difficult to wait for the wedding now but even so, he still felt a lot better.

As Eragon turned around to look at the boat again he saw it was already gone to continue roaming to land. All four of them watched it as it sailed to the south east, towards the Beor Mountains for some new sights of wonder and beauty.

**AN:**

Well, it's definitely the longest one yet! I hope you liked it! This chapter's been really fun to write! Partly because of all the small jokes that I love so much and partly because it was something that was left out of the book. This chapter, as well as the one where he talks to Murtagh, were so that I could show what I think he's thinking about trying to go after her again. I thought it was needed what with all the small hints that CP put in the books to there being some feelings that Arya had for Eragon…

The title was harder to come up with than any before… I chose this because Katrina is really the only woman that Eragon has to come to on these matters and one of the only women he's got for a feminine point of view! Nasuada is too busy running the world, Arya is Arya and is not going to talk to Eragon about this stuff anytime soon and Saphira, while being female, is a dragon and so cannot give the woman's point of view as easily… plus I like Katrina and I think she was missing some screen time so I decided to give it to her!

Anyway! I'm going to post this chapter so you'll have to excuse me for leaving… Please review! It will give me encouragement to write a chapter that I accidentally left out when I wrote all the existing ones!


	11. Chapter 11: Just A Quite Afternoon

**AN:**

OK… I need help! I'm writing the wedding chapter that will be the one after the next and I've got a problem. Eragon is marrying them and I'm having trouble trying to decide how to write the "to have and to hold" thing for Nasuada (Murtagh too but not as much… I have it but it could be better). I don't want the Christian wedding words, they're too impersonal and I think that the whole beauty of having Eragon do it is not that he's a rider but that he's a close friend of the two and so can say more personal things… If anyone's got any suggestions about what I can write there I would really appreciate it! (plus you'll get a very nice "thank you" in the chapter itself and eternal fame for your help ).

**Just a quiet afternoon:**

It was two weeks before the wedding and Eragon finally managed to arrange an agreement between Orik and the clan chiefs and Murtagh. After weeks and weeks of Orik trying to convince the clan chiefs not to claim Murtagh's life, as a personal favor to Eragon who reminded him that he was his brother by extension through Eragon, and endless talks through mirrors and with Murtagh, both being separate because the dwarves didn't want to see or talk to Murtagh directly, they finally came to the agreement that Murtagh was to repay his debt to the dwarves through labor. Murtagh was to follow Orik's orders as his vassal until he deemed it that the debt was paid in full.

"Thank you Eragon! I owe you!" Murtagh said as Eragon left after telling him the deal.

"Why don't you worry about what you owe the dwarves first?" Eragon said jokingly. Murtagh just laughed and closed the door.

'What now?' Saphira asked.

'Now, I want to rest.'

'How about the plateau? I don't feel like being around two-legs right now.'

'Shall I leave then?' Eragon said in a fake offended tone.

'You know what I mean!'

'Yes. The plateau it is then!' And with one leap onto Saphira's back they were off, reaching the plateau in a matter of minutes.

When they reached it Eragon decided to start a fire and brew some tea.

'You wouldn't mind if we stayed for a couple of hours would you?' Eragon asked his partner of heart and soul.

'Hours? How about all day?'

'That sounds great! I would really love that!' Eragon said with a smile.

And so, they both sat there, dragon and rider, with Eragon leaning on Saphira's warm side and Saphira curled up, her wing shielding Eragon from most of the sun's light and shading him in this warm day but still giving him a good view of the plains to the west and allowing the cool northern breeze to reach him.

He sat like that, drinking tea and conversing with Saphira, making plans, for a few good hours. When they were tired of making plans they changed to simply exchanging thoughts and emotions between them. After a few hours he felt Saphira's curiosity rise through their mental link. Feeling curious himself he asked her what she saw but the only answer he got was in the form of an image of a weird _something_ in the sky to their north east. He decided to inspect for his own and got up from under her wing and looked to the north east to where Saphira was looking. At first he didn't see anything because Saphira's vision was slightly better than his, but then he also noticed something, a weird dot in the sky that was getting bigger and bigger with each passing moment. When it was big enough for him to see the green his heart did a backflip and he got really excited.

'Do you think that it could be what I think it is?' he asked Saphira, almost not daring to hope.

'It might very well be! She did say she would write again before she came and the wedding is really soon.' Saphira responded and they both just sat there waiting and watching the green dot getting bigger and closer.

When it was close enough to recognize a mast and sails Eragon's heart burst with excitement at the thought of meeting Arya soon and when the boat was above the plateau and low enough Eragon ran up to it meeting it sooner than he would have if he waited.

He carefully took out the letter that was attached to it without damaging the boat itself and whispered a few words to set it roaming the land like the first one. He then started walking towards Saphira opening the letter on the way, enjoying the writing he knew so well. As he studied it closer he noticed the writing was a bit less tidy than usual with a lot more crossed out words and more slanted than usual, as if she wrote in a hurry and, hopefully, with excitement.

'Don't compliment yourself too much!' Saphira said as if it was her job to keep his ego in check.

'I'm not! But what's so bad about hoping?' he retorted.

'As long as you stay with your feet on the ground.'

'Agreed' he said and by that time he already reached Saphira. He settled beside her and, with her reading the letter through him, started to read the letter.

_Dear Eragon_

_It is with the greatest joy that I write this letter to you to tell you I'll be arriving at Illirea a week before the wedding on the night of the full moon. I would really like it if you and Saphira could meet me near the river directly north of Illirea at noon. If you can't then scry me two days prior, although I really wish you could come._

_Hoping to meet you and Saphira soon._

_Yours truly_

_Arya_

Eragon read and reread the letter a few times before he was sure he didn't miss a thing.

He was going to see Arya, and soon too!

He suddenly had an idea which he shared with Saphira.

'I think that's a great idea!'

'Then let us go tomorrow, it is too late in the day for that now.'

'Agreed!'

With that settled the two got comfortable again and stayed there talking and sharing emotions and images until the sun has set in the east and then got back to their rooms for a good night's sleep before tomorrow's journey.

**AN:**

I know it's not a long chapter and that nothing important happened here but it was still necessary in my opinion. I also had to find a place to put the solution to the MurtaghXDwarves problem and this seemed like a good a place as any…

So that's it… please review and if you have advice regarding my problem that was mentioned in the AN at the beginning I would really like it!

P.S. next chapter is Eragon and Saphira meeting Arya and Firnen so it should be longer and with more things happening to compensate for this chapter!

P.S.2. I know the title sucks but it was hard to find one since nothing much happens in this chapter.


	12. Chapter 12: Reunion

**AN:**

**Restrained. Freedom: **Ok so the deal between Murtagh and the dwarves was basically that whenever the king of the dwarves called him he would come to "do his bidding" (for lack of a better way to put this) but other than that Murtagh will be his own master and would probably choose to be with Nasuada when he isn't helping Arya with the duties of the riders…

Ok so in this chapter there might be a few things that are not as CP wrote the but I tried to stick to it on the less important stuff. If you don't know yet this is the reunion between Eragon and Arya. Between the last chapter and this one is when Eragon and Saphira went to Brom's grave…

**Reunion:**

It was two hours to noon and Eragon was early. He was pacing back and forth nervously, unsure what to expect of the upcoming meeting and was going mad with anticipation.

Saphira was merely sitting and watching him with amusement.

'Calm down, she'll be here.'

'I know…' he said but continued his pacing.

An hour passed and Eragon finally settled down. Another half an hour passed and he was pacing again.

'We should have seen her by now. It's unlike her to be late! Maybe something happened to her?'

'Listen to yourself Eragon! She's more than a capable warrior! I'm sure she's fine.'

'You're right.'

'Have you seen that thing in the sky?'

'Yeah. It looks like a dragon doesn't it?'

'It does. Probably just Murtagh taking Nasuada away from the city and now they're back.'

'That's what I thought too.'

And with that they fell silent again. With time the dragon came nearer and Eragon could see more details clearly.

'Is it possible you're also seeing green?' Eragon asked.

'I am. Probably just a trick of the light.'

But as it drew closer there was no mistaking it.

'That's not Thorn!' Eragon exclaimed.

'Then let us go see who it is!' Saphira said with a mixture of excitement a little fear.

They drew closer and closer and when they were close enough Eragon carefully reached out with his mind to the rider- for one could be seen clearly on the dragon's back.

He at first met a mental wall but then it was lowered and the consciousness he found behind it took his breath away.

'Arya?' he asked mentally.

'Aye!' she responded and he heard a roar follow it. By the time it took him to recover his senses they were close enough for him to see her on the back of a great and magnificent green dragon with a giant grin on her face, the likes of which he'd never seen on her face before.

He couldn't trust his voice to be carried through all the noise and he'd already withdrawn from her mind so he just gestured to the ground and she nodded in response. As they slowly descended to the river bank Eragon noticed two things in particular. First was that he'd never seen Arya this happy and _herself_. Second was that both dragons were so excited to meet each other, they could barely restrain themselves from jumping at each other, regardless of the riders on their backs.

When they finally landed he quickly undid his legs straps and jumped off Saphira's beck, who lost no time and immediately went to meet the new dragon. Arya was on the ground walking towards him and it took all of his willpower not to run to her. When they reached each other Eragon could only stare at her and was therefore really surprised when she brought him back to reality by starting the elves' formal greeting which he returned in kind.

"Un du evarínya ono varda." Arya finished.

"So you're a rider" was all he could think to say.

"Yes I am" se answered with a laugh and showed him her Gedwëy Ignasia.

"How?"

"We were on our way back to Ellesmera and I carried the egg. As we entered the forest it started to shake a little but I paid it no mind because Saphira's egg also shook a lot. By night it was really shaking terribly and just when I thought the dragon inside might have gone mad a crack appeared and out came a green dragon's head." With that she looked at her dragon who was sniffing Saphira now.

"I trust he has a name."

"Yes of course" she said and then must have called him for he turned his head towards them.

"Eragon, I'd like you to meet Firnen. Firnen, this is Eragon."

"Well met Firnen!"

'Well met Shadeslayer' he replied with a voice Eragon has never heard before. It was very deep, deeper than Glaedr's, but also had a musical quality to it, like his rider's mind.

"I see you've met Saphira" Eragon said.''

'Yes we've met' Saphira responded and once again the dragons were absorbed with one another.

"You'll have to forgive him" Arya said, "he's usually really friendly, it's just that Saphira's the only other dragon he's ever met."

"Must be exciting for him" Eragon thought.

"It is. I can feel it." Arya's voice was full of wonder and joy as she said those words.

After a few moments of silence Arya spoke again.

"Eragon please forgive me" she said in the Ancient Language.

"What for? You've done nothing to offend me" he said curiously, also in the Ancient Language.

"I his Firnen from you. I wanted to tell you, I wanted to so much, but I was so caught up with taking care of him and I didn't want anyone to find out about him until he was big enough to defend himself. For that I am sorry and beg your forgiveness."

"There's nothing to forgive, you did nothing wrong" he repeated. "You did what you thought was right and I would have done the same as you. I know what it's like wanting to protect you newly hatched dragon" he said with a sad smile.

"Thank you."

They then went and took the saddles off their dragons so they'll be more free and comfortable.

(Skipping to right after Saphira and Firnen leave)

After they passed the initial embarrassment Eragon remembered something that rested in one of the saddlebags.

"Wait right here" he said and ran off leaving her with a curious look on her face.

When he returned he had his hands behind his back, a fact that only raised her curiosity.

"When you said you were coming I had an idea for something you'd like" he started.

"I went with Saphira and it took us about half a day to find it but it was worth it."

"What is it?" she asked for he still hasn't moved.

"A gift returning to its original owner" and with that he showed her what he held. The sight took her breath away. In his hands was a gilded lily. An actual gilded lily she immediately recognized with its roots in some wet soil held together by a piece of cloth.

"May I?" she asked.

"It's always been yours" he said and handed it to her.

She marveled at its beauty for a long time. It was prettier than she remembered it.

"What did you mean when you said ' returning to its original owner '?" she suddenly remembered.

"It's the original one. Believe me, it took an hour to find it" he said with a smile and what appeared to be pride.

"You mean there's more?" she asked astonished.

"Many more" he replied. "You were right, it did reproduce."

"It must have been…"

"Unbelievable. You'll have to see it someday." As he remembered the sight of tens of gilded lilies a smile spread on his face.

"Maybe you'll take me there?" she said and caught him by surprise. When he looked at her he saw a look he couldn't quite place.

"I'd love to take you there" he said after he regained himself.

"Good" she said and sat down. Eragon sat a pace away from her.

She looked at him with an amused smile and closed the distance, sitting right next to him and making his heart race.

"Thank you for this gift Eragon. I can't tell you how much this means to me."

"Anytime."

And they fell silent again simply enjoying each other's company.

"Tell me about raising Firnen. I know from experience it can get hard." This time it was Eragon who broke the silence.

At that Arya's eyes lit up and she talked for the better part of an hour about what she's done, how it's been like for her to have Firnen in her life and anything else she chose to share. Eragon sat and listened intently to every detail she gave him, drinking in her words as if they were water and he a parched man.

When she finished he simply looked at her and se at him. Suddenly thoughts of what must come and what must be done entered his mind and he sobered up. She noticed that.

"Are you ok? You look like something might be wrong."

"There's something that I've kept from you."

"Oh?"

"Saphira and I, along with all the other dragons, reached a decision about our future" he started with his eyes cast down. He couldn't look at her.

"What is it?" she asked when he didn't continue.

"We thought about the Eldunari and the eggs and the order of the riders and we reached a conclusion.

"The only way we can ensure the continuity of our order is by leaving Alagaesia, at least until the riders are strong enough to keep the peace which will take a century at the least."

She looked at him with what could only be described as shock.

"Why leave though? Can't you find a place in Alagaesia?" she asked pleadingly.

"We thought about it but even if we could find a place we would be too close to people who might want to harm us. We need security in distance for the beginning at least.

"Will you come with us?" he asked hopefully after a while.

"I wish I could but I can't." she asked and now it was her turn to look away in sadness.

"Why?" he asked slightly afraid. "You're a rider. Your place is with us rebuilding the riders order!"

"Eragon… the elves chose me as their queen" she said and stopped his next argument in his throat.

He looked at her in amazement. He could not believe what he'd just heard.

"But you're a rider!" he said finally. "We're not supposed to side with any of the races!"

"I know that but I am also an elf sworn to help my people" she responded but he could still see a tear forming in her eye. "Right now they need me."

"But the riders need you too! _I_ need you!" he almost yelled at her.

"I know Eragon." _I need you too_ she thought. "But right now my people need me more."

"You're staying for the elves, Murtagh's staying for Nasuada! Am I just supposed to rebuild the riders alone?"

"You won't be alone, I'm sure people will want to come with you."

"Yeah bug help" he said bitterly. "So it's going to be one rider teaching however many there's going to be while also building our city! Can't wait" he said darkly and turned his face back to the ground.

"Eragon" she said and his cheek in her hand turning it towards her, but he fought and still looked away.

"Eragon look at me" she said and he finally did.

"Had I known of your plans to leave this land I would have never have taken the duty of queen, but alas it was not to be through no one's fault" she said and she looked genuinely sad. "I know that right now it seems difficult, even impossible, but you have my word," here she switched to the Ancient Language. "When the elves have no more need of me then I will give up the crown and come to you to help rebuild the riders." He looked more hopeful at that.

"I also promise to that I will come every time I can. After all, I also need training from a seasoned and experienced rider, ebrithil." He was taken aback, but pleased, at the compliment and the title of honor she gave him.

After that promise he lost most of his anger and bitterness and the rest was gone after just a few minutes.

"Agreed" he said and she let her hand fall from his cheek.

"When will you be leaving?" she asked.

"I don't know exactly" he admitted. "Probably a few weeks after the wedding, a month at the most."

"Then let us enjoy this time as best we can."

"Aye."

Not a lot happened after that. They both agreed to stay the night there, knowing that they won't be able to reach Illirea in time without their dragons who would probably not be back any time soon. They lit a fire and sat side by side before it.

As they sat around the fire eating some vegetables they brought with them, Eragon looked over at Arya, all the way from the tips of her feet up to her green eyes and her raven hair. She caught him staring at her and he quickly averted his gaze, suddenly finding the fire very interesting.

"Eragon?"

"Hmm"

"I would like to share my true name with you" she said in the Ancient Language. Eragon immediately froze trying to figure if he heard her right. After a moment's hesitation he decided he did and that it was best to answer quickly lest he offended her.

"You honor me. I would gladly hear it and guard it as if it were mine or Saphira's"

That seemed to be the right answer. She leaned over to him, her cheek touching his and sending warmth all through his body. She put her lips as close to his ear as she could and he could hear her take a breath before telling him her true name.

As she said it he felt her shiver at the sound of it.

When she was done she slowly drew back and looked at him, both excited and scared, as he took in the full meaning of what he heard.

Most of it he knew or could have guessed already but there were some parts that he never even imagined, some good, some not so good, but all of them a part of her. From her name he also saw that her feelings for him were more than friendship, they were deeper.

A spark of hope lit up in his heart.

"It's a good name" he told her and her whole body relaxed. "You should be proud of it. I shall forever keep it, even when it no longer yours to use."

"Thank you" she said with a smile on her lips and a spark in her eye.

"Arya, I would like to tell you my true name if you would hear it" he said feeling both more excited, and more scared then he ever felt before.

"I would be honored to and I will keep it as mine own."

He then imitated her, leaning close to her and whispering his true name in her ear, a shiver coming down his spine at the sound of it. He could smell crushed pine needles from her hair and was intoxicated. After he was done he lingered for another second next to her but then drew back and watched her for a reaction, just as she watched him. He waited as she took it all in and took a deep breath. He was scared for his true name showed his deep feelings for her and last time he shared those feelings with her it did not go so well, but then he remembered her true name, and the part about him, and relaxed, but just a little but.

"It's a great name" she finally said. "Thank you for sharing it with me. Know that I will always guard it."

She knew who he was. She knew him entirely as only Saphira does, for better and worst, and she didn't turn away. What's even more she now knew how deep his love for her was and she didn't turn him down. The spark in his heart was now a small flame. Weak, but still warm.

After that there was no need for anything else to be said and they simply sat next to each other looking at the fire.

Eragon sat with his legs stretched towards the fire, leaning back on his hands, when he felt Arya's hand reach out to his. When she found it, she grasped it and sent a warm sensation up his arm. He grasped her hand in response and their fingers intertwined.

He looked at her and she looked at him with a smile.

The last thing Eragon remembered was lying on his back next to Arya watching the stars, their hands held together, as he slowly sank to his waking dreams, all of which were about the elf lying beside him.

**AN:**

I promised a long chapter to compensate for last one and I delivered! Hope you enjoyed it. Just a few things that I wanted to say:

It was really important to me to show how Eragon took the thought of rebuilding the riders alone. I think that CP's version was a little bit not believable, I don't remember it specifically but I do remember it was kinda weak. Anyway… I wanted to show that but also give him a ray of hope, something that wasn't really present in the book.

So next chapter's the wedding. It's the longest one yet and I think it might be the longest of all the chapters.


	13. Chapter 13: The Wedding

**AN:**

OK! This chapter was originally left out, partly because I forgot it and partly because I didn't think there was anything to do with it and that I wouldn't do it justice. At the end of the day I'm glad I did this! It was actually one of the reviews (can't remember which one) that got me thinking about it and I'm not even sure that it had anything to do with the actual wedding…

As promised I want to give my sincere thanks to Restrained. Freedom for helping me with Eragon's speech. It really helped and I'm much more happy with how it is now than what I had.

**The wedding:**

It was nightfall, and Eragon found himself marrying another one of his family members.

It was a beautiful night with the full moon above and most of Illirea were outside on the plateau above the city along with more than a few people from all over Alagaesia who came to see their queen getting married. Eragon was standing near the edge of the plateau and all the guests were before him. It took quite some preparations for the wedding to take place there. Enchantments and fences to make sure no one fell, bringing all the chairs, tables, food and people. It was lots of work but worth every second of it.

One could not ask for a more beautiful scene than this. The full moon was just behind Eragon and Murtagh, who was standing nervously next to him. A wonderful view of the plains surrounding the city was visible to everybody and the pleasant night air above the city was much better than the air in between the city streets.

Eragon was looking at his brother next to him and could see him shaking a bit as they waited for Nasuada to come, nothing that people could notice but Eragon who was closer and had better vision than most people could see it.

"Nervous?" he asked Murtagh with a small smile on his lips.

"You've no idea!" Murtagh whispered back.

"You know she'll probably show up" Eragon said and his smile widened. This managed to relax Murtagh up for he also cracked a smile. The two dragons behind them snorted in amusement and drew the attention of the nearby people who looked quite scared.

Eragon looked to his left and saw Arya and Firnen there. Arya had a curious look on her face at the dragons' behavior but Eragon merely winked at her. He was surprised when she smiled in response but just smiled back at her and looked back to his front where a straight line was made for Nasuada to walk through. With the light of some torches that were scattered around Eragon could see a figure turn to walk in the middle of the line and people filling in the space behind the figure. Eragon knew who that was but only when it was halfway there could he really see Nasuada's face. When her face was visible Eragon could feel Murtagh tensing next to him.

"Relax!" he whispered to him. "It will be a shame if the groom would faint in his own wedding."

"I won't" Murtagh assured him. "I can't wait till your wedding day comes! See how you like it" Murtagh added and Eragon was immediately silenced to the great amusement of both his dragon and his brother's dragon.

As Nasuada walked closer and entered the light of the many torches that were at the front next to Eragon and Murtagh, both magical and normal ones, Eragon could see her clearly and had to admit she looked beautiful. She was wearing a stunning yellow dress that looked beautiful next to Murtagh's red clothes. As was her habit, the sleeves of the dress were cut short so that she could proudly show her scars. On the bottom however, the dress was long and reached all the way down to the grass that was under her feet. As he looked at her feet he noticed with surprise that she was barefoot with grass blades crushed under her feet and popping from between her fingers. The sight made a smile appear on his face. After all, it wasn't every day that the queen of Alagaesia was seen barefoot at social events.

He looked to his right at his brother to see how he was coping and was pleasantly surprised. The moment that Nasuada came into full view, Murtagh immediately relaxed as if all of his worries and fears disappeared. He had eyes only for Nasuada and it seemed to Eragon that he was completely oblivious to his surroundings.

When she finally reached them Murtagh had a big stupid grin on his face and upon seeing it, Nasuada had one to match his. She was standing in front of him and they both stared deep into each other's eyes. They were so immersed in each other that they were slightly surprised when Eragon spoke out and Eragon couldn't help but crack a smile.

"People of Alagaesia!" His voice was magically magnified so that everyone could hear him as though they were on the first line and the plateau was luckily leveled so that everyone could see the front. "We are gathered here today to celebrate the most sacred and beautiful bond that two people can share. The bond of love." Both Nasuada and Murtagh's eyes lit up. "It's rare to see love so pure and true in this world but the love that you two share is as pure and true as it gets."

"Do you have your rings?" Eragon asked them both and they nodded in response.

"Nasuada. You have led the people of this land through their darkest hour. You have been able to see past what most people saw, and had the courage to do what others wouldn't. Here, again, we see your ability to see people for who they really are and your ability to forgive, as you have forgiven my brother and seen him for the good person that he is. Will you stay by his side, no matter what, and love him for the rest of your life?"

"I will!" Nasuada said with a chuckle, a single tear running down her cheek, and slid the ring on Murtagh's middle finger. After she did, he lifted his hand to wipe the tear on her face and cupped her cheek as he kissed her lightly but passionately.

"Murtagh?" Eragon said a couple of seconds after they parted.

"Nasuada" Murtagh surprised everyone as he started to speak in the Ancient Language as he and Eragon agreed. The words themselves were lost to most of the crowd, but their meaning was clear to everyone.

"In all my life, I've never been as happy as I am with you. I love you with all my heart. With this ring, I swear to love you, protect you and, with all my power, make you happy, for as long as you're my wife." Another tear was forming on Nasuada's eye but this time Murtagh had one too and they didn't bother to wipe them, they were tears of happiness, the greatest happiness the both of them ever felt. Murtagh slid his ring on Nasuada's middle finger, the same ring he proposed to her with, and as he did Eragon could see his hand shaking a bit.

"Nasuada, Murtagh" Eragon said when he was done and looked at each of them in turn. "I now declare you husband and wife, for as long as you both shall live. I wish you both all the happiness in the world." They both looked the happiest Eragon has ever seen them and had a wide smile on their faces. "You may kiss the bride" Eragon added quietly to Murtagh who wasted no time, grabbed Nasuada in his arms and kissed her deeply and passionately. All the gathered people cheered, clapped and, in some cases, cried. Nasuada and Murtagh seemed to not notice any of it for they stayed in each other's arms, kissing all the while. The kiss lasted for so long that Eragon began to feel uncomfortable to intrude on their privacy but decided to draw them back to their surroundings; they'll have their time alone later on.

When they finally drew apart, after Eragon asked Thorn to draw their attention, they still held each other closely with Murtagh putting his arm around Nasuada. They started to walk to the back of the crowd, where the many tables were waiting for all the guests, shaking hands, saying 'thank you's and smiling all the while. Eragon was at the heels with Thorn and Saphira, the dragons being great help to keep most of the people away and allowing them to walk faster. Not many people felt good about approaching too close to the dragons.

When they reached their table, a long rectangular table at the edge of the sitting area, they sat down next to each other while everyone who chose to came to congratulate them. There was a very long line of people, all of whom bearing gifts to the new couple. At the front of the line stood Eragon and Saphira, behind them stood Arya and Firnen who was looking around all the time, being still new to the whole world, and to humans and parties in particular, he wanted to absorb everything around him. Behind them stood Orik who agreed it was important that he came for the stability of Alagaesia and also because Eragon asked him. He also had to come and collect his oath from Murtagh, but that was for after the wedding and celebration.

Eragon came up to them and saw that they both still had the largest stupidest grin in the world.

"You two look like a couple of love struck fools!" He couldn't help but smile as well.

"Maybe it's because we are?" Nasuada said and they shared another kiss, this time it was shorter and they quickly drew apart.

"Thank you so much for doing this for us Eragon" Nasuada said.

"There's really no need…"

"Yes there is!" Murtagh said and despite the happy demeanor Eragon could tell that he was dead serious. "You've done more for this land than anyone did in the last millennia, and you've done more for us than anyone ever did." His face grew more serious as he said this.  
>"If you ever have need of us, whether it be advice, help or just company, don't even hesitate to ask."<p>

Eragon was really touched by this.

"Thank you" he said simply. It was good to know that no matter what he will have them.

"There's no need for thanks" Nasuada said with a smile. "We're family now!" she said with a smile.

"That we are!" Eragon said, also with a smile. "And as your new brother-in-law I would like to give you this" and from his robes he drew a small, simple, wooden box that he handed to Nasuada.

When she opened it her breath caught and Murtagh's eyes widened a bit. Inside were two necklaces made of a simple golden chain and a gemstone hanging from it, one was a blood-red ruby and the other was a stunning clear purple. The stones were small, smaller than a nail, but all the more beautiful for it.

"This is beautiful" Nasuada said breathlessly.

"They have a special property." He said and they both looked up. "When you are apart, which will probably happen seeing as you both have duties, say the other's name in your mind while touching the gem and you will enter a dream-like state where you will both see each other, no matter the distance, and you will be able to be with each other for as long as you wish, in a land of you imagination's making." He was quite proud of himself for that particular piece of magic. He sat for a few good days trying to come up with the right spell to do this and after a couple of small glitches - like one where each person was in the other's body while using the necklace – he found the right wording.

"I don't believe it" Murtagh said as he beheld the necklaces that still lied in the box.

"Then try them out for yourselves" Eragon said with an amused expression. "When you want to end the spell then all you need to do is simple close your eyes, hold the necklace and say your own names in your mind" he added.

They both put the necklace around the other's neck, Murtagh got the red one of course, closed their eyes and went into a trance like state for a few moments. When they opened their eyes their looked stunned but also had a grin on their faces like a child who just managed to reach the high cookies jar.

"Thank you so much Eragon" Nasuada said and got up to hug him.

"Yes, thank you brother" Murtagh said and hugged him as well. Eragon had to laugh and he could hear Saphira's rumbling sound from behind him.

When they let go of him he merely smiled and wished them a good, long and happy life together and Saphira added her congratulations and happy wishes.

Then Eragon walked away, knowing that the two had still many guests and marry wishers ahead of them. His place was at the other side of the same table but because of its size it took a minute's walk for him to get there. When he finally settled down in his seat Arya finished giving her present to the couple and was walking the same path that he walked just a minute ago to come and seat next to him. After a few paces she looked up at Firnen with a smile, climbed on to his back and with one small jump they were both on the right side of the table.

"Didn't feel like walking?" Eragon asked her amused.

"No, Firnen just didn't see the point of walking when one could simply jump. And I think he was showing off a bit" she added with a whisper.

'I heard that!' he said but Arya simply laughed. Eragon couldn't help but stare at her as she laughed her beautiful flowing laugh. He's never seen her this free, this much _herself_. He liked it better.

"Eragon you're staring again" she said with a smile.

"Sorry" he said and shook his head. "Wait what do you mean _again_?" he asked suddenly after he caught on.

"Well," she said. "While you have been able to control yourself much better lately, you have stared in the past."

Saphira and Firnen snorted their amusement and Eragon's ears turned red as he turned his gaze to the ground. Arya merely laughed and sat down next to him.

"It was a beautiful ceremony" Arya said after a short while.

"It really was" he agreed.

"What do those necklaces do?" she asked after another pause. "I could see they had a spell in them but I couldn't tell what it was for."

When Eragon told her, her eyes widened a bit in surprise.

"That's a really complicated spell" she said when he finished. "It must have taken some time to perfect."

"It has, but it was worth it."

"You have grown wise Eragon. It's not anybody that can make such a unique spell. Brom and Oromis would have been proud" she said softly and put her hand his leg sending chills up his spine. Her words touched him. He knew them to be true but it was still nice to hear it from someone else.

"Thanks" he said and before he knew what he was doing grasped her hand with his.

She didn't flinch, she didn't even draw back. Instead she gave him a smile, squeezed his hand and left it the way it was, with his hand grasping hers, their fingers intertwined. They sat like that for a long time, enjoying the cool night air, until the food was brought and they both had need of those hands.

As they ate chatter and conversation broke out from all the tables. At their table you could see Murtagh and Nasuada, still holding each other close, talking to everyone around. Eragon and Arya were in front of them, eating, drinking and conversing with one another and everyone else close by. The dragons were behind them, each one with a couple of roasted deer next to him and eating hungrily. Everyone had a great time.

About an hour later the musicians got up on their premade stage and prepared their instruments. Murtagh and Nasuada took the hint, got up, and hand in hand walked to the middle of the dance floor to great cheers from the crowd. When they reached it the music started and with it started their dance. It was a slow tune, designed for couples and it suited the very much. They danced and turned on the dance floor holding each other closely, Nasuada resting her head on Murtagh's chest and Murtagh resting his on her head. It was beautiful to watch the two of them together.

"It really is" Arya said when he shared this thought with her.

They sat and watched in silence as more people joined the couple on the dance floor. Murtagh and Nasuada didn't seem to notice any of them as they swayed to the sound of the music and Eragon was really envious of them at that moment.

"I can barely remember the last time I've danced." The statement was so unexpected that all Eragon could do was reply with a simple "Oh?" which he regretted immediately.

"Yeah" Arya said with a smile. "I think it was a few years before I first became an ambassador for the elves. There was a celebration of some sort with nothing to celebrate. I was so angry at the fact that we were celebrating when there was a war outside that I couldn't even enjoy it." Arya looked longingly at the dance floor.

"Who were you dancing with?"

"Faolin" she confirmed his suspicion.

"Were you good?" he asked intrigued.

"Yes. But it's been so long ago that I don't know if I still remember how to."

"I'm sure you're still great" Eragon said and she smiled to him. They fell into silence again.

"It's a pity no elves are here. Humans are too scared to ask the queen of the elves for a dance" she said after another song was done.

"Well, elves in general are intimidating for humans, so the queen of the elves is naturally even more intimidating for them."

Arya looked at him with an annoyed look on her face but then looked back to the dance floor.

"You're not intimidated by me, are you Eragon?" she asked with an annoyed air in her voice that Eragon didn't understand.

"Of course not! Why would you…" And then it hit him. He felt really stupid at that moment.

"Arya?" he said, a bit unsure of himself.

"Yes Eragon?"

"Would you like to dance?"

"Yes I would. What gave you that idea?" she asked with a smile and the tips of his ears got red.

'You can be really stupid sometimes, you know?' Saphira said with clear amusement in her voice.

'Yes I am aware of that, thank you.'

As they walked to the dance floor hand in hand they passed Roran and Katrina who were dancing while Horst took care of Ismira. While Arya's head was still directed to the middle of the floor and Eragon's stayed on the couple, Roran looked up at him and, as he recognized who he was with, he smiled at him and gave him a thumb up. Eragon's cheeks burned and he could feel them getting red.

When they reached the middle of the dance floor Arya turned to face him and for the first time that night he really looked at every detail of her.

She was wearing a beautiful green tunic and leggings. They were simple but very elegant. The clothes were closely following every curve of Arya's body and Eragon was once again stunned at her beauty. Her hair was not tied like it usually was but instead it flowed from her head down to her shoulders and rested on her chest. Behind it he could see a necklace, the only jewelry she was wearing. The necklace was a shining color of silver that reminded him of the full moon above them. Hanging on it was a set of round, green gemstones, the exact color of Firnen's scales, in a flowing structure of silver. Each stone was wrapped in a single strand of silver that started under the previous stone. All the stones were symmetrically laid from smallest to biggest so that the biggest two were near the middle and exactly the same size. In the middle was a beautiful, clear, deep blue, tear shaped stone that matched Saphira's scales. Even though that stone was the largest, it was not a lot bigger than a coin. It was the most beautiful piece of jewelry he's ever seen.

After a second or two she closed the distance between them and put her arms around his neck. He, in response, grasped her waist with both his hands, marveling at the feeling. They leaned closer to each other so that their heads were just an inch apart and they swayed together from side to side to the rhythm of the music. At that moment Eragon left the party. He was no longer on the dance floor, he wasn't even sure that he was in Alagaesia anymore. All he knew was that he was next to Arya, and that's all that mattered at the moment.

"Where did you get that necklace?" he asked quietly. They were so close that he could feel her breathing and smell the all too familiar smell of crushed pine needles drifting from her hair.

"It was a gift from my mother, the last gift she gave me." She was just as quiet as he was.

"It's beautiful, but not nearly as beautiful as you are."

"Thank you." He could feel her smile at his words, both their eyes were closed at this point as they gave more attention to their other senses:

The feel of Arya's tunic against his hands that was covering her slender form. He could almost imagine how it would feel like to actually hold her bare waists and his heart skipped a beat. The feel of Eragon's muscled shoulders as she rested her hands on them and his soft brown hair flowing through her fingers as she ran her hand through it.

The sound of each other's breathing, rhythmic and entrancing. At times they breathed with ease, taking in the cool night air, and at times they were fighting for breath, not because of the dancing but because Eragon's hand slipped a bit lower or because Arya's waist brushed against his in a motion that made them both crave hopelessly for more.

They danced in quiet for a long time before Arya spoke out.

"Are you sure there's no alternative other than leaving?" she asked with an air of hopefulness.

"Yes." This simple word hurt him more than ever did before. "Are you sure you can't quit your position as the queen?" he asked although he knew the answer.

"Yes" she said barely audible, the word caught in her throat. She leaned a bit closer and their foreheads touched.

"Then we will just have to enjoy the time we still have together." He guessed she agreed with him for because after that, she slipped her right arm under his left, locking her hands behind his back, and rested her head on his chest with her eyes closed. He looked down at her and saw her smile softly, reveling at how it felt to be held by him, to feel the steady rising and falling of his chest, to hear his heart beating.

She was very close to him now and Eragon acted upon instinct, lifted his arms so that one was at her lower back and one was between her shoulder blades and pulled her even closer. Their bodies were now pressed up against one another and he could feel her every curve. Arya sighed happily and held Eragon even closer, if that was possible. Eragon gave her a squeeze and, with a happy sigh of his own, rested his head on hers, took in a long breath filled with the smell of crushed pine needles and closed his eyes, enjoying the moment.

Despite the fact that he knew he would be leaving Alagaesia soon, he enjoyed the night greatly. As they danced he decided to memorize everything about her. The smell of her hair, the way it looked as it fell on her shoulders and on his chest.

The way her body felt against his as they danced the night away.

**AN:**

Wow! This started out a lot smaller and turned out to be one of the longest ones yet! It was really fun to write this chapter, especially all the MxN and ExA...

I know there was some skipping of POV at the end and it may have been a bit confusing but I just wanted to capture this through both of them and I think the gain outweighs the loss.

If anyone wants to know how I imagined the stones on Eragon's necklaces than this is how: australiagems. com/Store/images/Amethyst%207mm%20x%205mm% but a bit deeper and darker shade of purple and for Murtagh's just imagine it being red.  
>The only thing I could think of that looks anything like what I had in mind for Arya's necklace was this: szilviabead. deviantar .comgallery/?catpath=scraps#/d2o7nlp

As always, it would make my day if you guys reviewed!


	14. Chapter 14: Not The End

**AN:**

So last chapter I got some positive reviews about the whole Eragon/Arya part so I'm glad you liked it! I also got a compliment about the vows so once again I would like to thank Restrained. Freedom for the help!

So this chapter takes place when Eragon's leaving Alagaesia and it starts when he's saying goodbye do Roran. This is actually the first thing that I had in mind when I started this fix, the rest was just rolling with what felt right.

If this story was a one chapter story than this would be it! This is how I think the series would have ended MUCH better and wouldn't have left us (or at least me) saying "WTF? Is this the best you could do after all they've been through?" I really thought that the characters deserved more than that!

Sorry for the rant but it just really annoyed me.

It's a pretty short chapter but what ever…

**Not the end (AKA How it should have ended):**

"Goodbye cousin" Eragon said, a tear forming in his eye.

"Goodbye _brother_" he answered.

"Brother" Eragon agreed and hugged him. They embraced each other for a minute or two and then drew apart.

"Goodbye Arya" he said. It was the saddest and hardest thing he'd ever said.

"No need for goodbye yet. I'll stay for a bit longer."

"Thank you" he said and they both drew their hoods over their heads. He offered his arm to her and, to his delight, she took it. They walked hand in hand with the other elves following behind them in two straight lines and the dragons circling each other above them.

After they made a turn with the road Eragon could hear a cry from behind them. Suddenly he remembered the vision he had all those months ago and he was overcome with sadness.

They continued walking until they reached the ship and boarded it.

"Stay till the first bend of the river" Eragon asked.

"I will" Arya answered and they both fell quiet, not knowing what to say but enjoying their last moments together for a long time.

As they reached the first bend Eragon's heart sank. He turned to Arya and she turned to him. They looked at each other, both trying to memorize each detail about the other. A cheekbone line, a hair out of place.

"Arya" he whispered but she was close enough to hear. His voice was full of love and affection, but also pain and loss.

"Eragon" she whispered back, failing to keep her voice level and giving away her sadness.

"Arya I…" she started but was cut off by her index finger on his lips.

"Don't worry Eragon" she said sweetly and softly, her whisper barely audible. "This isn't the end. I'll see you again" she said confidently.

"How can you know for sure?" he asked desperately.

She answered by closing the remaining distance between them, little as it was, and putting her lips softly on his.

At first he was so surprised that he didn't know what to do, but then instinct took over and he returned the kiss. At first it was gentle and soft. Eragon marveled at how soft and sweet her lips were while Arya enjoyed the feel of his rougher lips on hers and breathed in his sweet scent.

Eragon was so excited he thought that if he touched any more of her he would surely pass out, but the temptation was too great. He slowly lifted his hands and put one on her lower back and one on the back of her head, her raven hair slipping between his fingers. Arya put both her hands behind his neck pulling him even closer to her.

Eragon held her as if his life depended on it.

The kiss grew more passionate with each passing moment. It seemed like an eternity to Eragon but it was still too soon when she pulled back, her hands still around his neck and her forehead leaning on his, both of them breathing the same air.

"Goodbye Eragon Shadeslayer" she whispered sweetly.

"Goodbye Arya Shadeslayer" he whispered back. "Until we meet again."

"Until we meet again" she repeated and with that she freed herself from his arms and he reluctantly let her go.

She stood two paces away from him looking straight at him with her beautiful green eyes. She lifted her right hand and Eragon felt a gush of air as Firnen came down and lifted her off the ship.

"Until we meet again" Eragon said to himself as he watched her fly away.

Eragon stood on the deck looking to the east, knowing that somewhere out there lies his new home and thinking about the kiss. He could still feel her soft lips on his.

'I already miss Alagaesia' he told Saphira.

'I know but we could always come back' she said encouragingly.

"How? Angela's prophecy said I would leave never to return!"

'But it didn't say when' she pointed out.

Eragon felt as if a piece of the puzzle finally slid into place.

'You're right!' he said excitedly.

_I will come back_ he thought to himself. _This is not the end._

'No it isn't little one' Saphira said answering his thoughts. 'This is only the beginning!'

The small flame of hope in his heart was now a roaring fire.

**AN:**

Hope you liked it. I really felt obliged to write the end part about the prophecy because it really bugs me how he's all "This is what _fate_ said will happen so I guess it was meant to be and I have no say in the matter." It just really annoys me because, and I think it was said somewhere in the books too, if anyone can change the fate's design it's him and also, no one can predict the future accurately because once you do than just by knowing what's going to happen you can avoid it.

Next chapter is an epilog and is also quite long. I don't want to give away too much but there's a LOT of ExA so I hope you'll like it… It will definitely be a T rated chapter so be warned!


	15. Chapter 15: Epilog

**AN:**

So this will be the last chapter in this particular story. If you liked it than don't worry, I have a plan to write some more stories that relate to this one as fillers to what happened between this chapter and last one, and maybe even after this one! (more on that at the footnote)

(It feels weird to post the last chapter!)

So here it is, ENJOY!

**Epilog:**

Eragon was standing a clearing in the middle of the forest just outside the city. The clearing had a few fallen logs to sit on as well as a few large boulders. The ground was covered with grass completely with a few flowers scattered every few feet or so. There were bees in the air, flying from flower to flower and occasionally flying in circles around his head a few times before continuing to the next flower. The sky above him was a marvelous blue with a few white clouds floating around, occasionally hiding the yellow spring sun. At the edge of the clearing was a dense forest filled with all kinds of trees and animals. He watched as a squirrel ran near the edge of the tree line until it reached its home, climbed up the tree, and entered a hollow in the bark.

He looked up at the sky, breathing in the aroma filled air, and saw a few weird shapes in the sky.

'The little ones are practicing' Saphira commented.

'As they should be. Is that Murtagh and Thorn flying with them?'

'Yes. He said he'd take today's flying lesson, remember?'

'Oh right, I completely forgot!'

'Well then it's a good thing he didn't forget!' Eragon had to agree with her.

It's been two hundred years since Eragon has left Alagaesia. Two hundred years to the day. The city of Dras abr Garjzla was built for a hundred years now and housed more than fifty riders, all of whom were students of Eragon. Every few years a new building was built, mostly a new home to a rider that finished his training and was a rider in full, but other than that the city was complete after many years of building and planning.

Eragon was glad with what they have accomplished. First of all there was the beautiful city below him. Secondly there were the fifty plus riders that he'd trained and continued training almost every day for the past one hundred and eighty years. Each and every one of them was like a son or a daughter to him and he cared deeply about them, he was also very proud of them.

It took about twenty years for the first eggs that were sent to Alagaesia to hatch. When they did, they hatched for a young Urgal male named Dura'al, a name that took some getting used to on Eragon's part, whose dragon was brown like Eragon's hair and was called Dar'um, and a female human named Alice with a magnificent white dragoness named Opheila. They both arrived a few months after their dragons hatched and started their training with Eragon and the elves. Now they were both masters themselves and had a few students of their own who they taught with the wisdom and compassion they learned from Eragon.

The city was located in the valley in the middle of the island Eragon arrived at almost two hundred years ago. It was surrounded by tall mountains and had a narrow corridor, no wider than a few dragons across, leading to the wide coastline. The clearing Eragon was standing on was on one of the mountains above the city and looked like it was made by human hands. Up to this day Eragon couldn't tell why the trees wouldn't grow inside the clearing. From up here Eragon could see the entire city and all of its surrounding area. The city was completely engulfed by trees, in fact, the outskirts of the city was undistinguishable from the forest from where he was looking. He liked it that way.

The clearing itself was the meditation area for the new riders, the older ones usually explored the island and found their own meditation sites. Eragon however liked this place and chose to continue his meditations there even if he was sometimes interrupted.

As it was at the moment, the clearing was empty except for Eragon who was standing in the middle and Saphira who was now landing softly next to him so as not to destroy the vegetation. Eragon sat down where he stood, crossed his legs, closed his eyes and extended his mind as far as he could just as he did every day for the past two hundred years. When he just arrived he could barely reach the coastline but now he could reach much farther than the coastline and a few leagues into sea. As he extended his mind he was careful not to touch the city too much so as not to frighten or interrupt anyone during their studying.

As he meditated he was a part of nature. He was the trees, the flowers, the grass and the bushes. He was the squirrels running around looking for berries, he was the ants looking for seeds, he was the wolf hunting with the pack to feed the young, he was the birds high above floating on the thermals, he was the small fish in the ponds and the big ones at sea.

He and Saphira sat meditating without moving for almost an hour when suddenly he felt a consciousness he hasn't felt before enter from above the sea. It was a big consciousness and it had another one on its back. A dragon and rider.

As Eragon wondered who it could be, for he would have known if one of the riders in Alagaesia would return, the dragon and rider closed off their minds to him in panic and he felt very curious. Instead of listening to all of his surrounding he decided to focus on them and found a mental brick wall. He brushed against it, not in a hostile way, and thought he recognized something about it.

'Do you want to check it out?' Saphira asked and almost made him jump out of his skin. He'd forgotten she was there.

'Yes. Let's go!' he said and after one jump he was on her back, muttering two spells, one to make him stay on Saphira's back and the other to protect his legs from her scales. Her saddle wasn't with them. When he was done, Saphira wasted no time and immediately jumped into the air and raced towards the unknown rider and dragon.

Arya POV

They were flying for four days now and had almost no rest. There was a small island halfway to Dras abr Garjzla where they spent the second night of their journey but they didn't stay longer than it took the sun to rise. She was afraid that they would not get there in time for they had a strong head wind the entire first day that both exhausted Firnen and lost them some distance they could have covered. Now however she was confident they would make it there in time. They were mere hours from the city and she couldn't wait for them to get there. She could feel Firnen's excitement as well through their mental link and she smiled to herself. When she looked into his thoughts all she could see was an image of a great sapphire dragoness and she suspected that it was that that made him get over the hardships of their journey.

She sat erect on Firnen's back, watching the horizon, and tried to calm her mind and heart, one filled with thought, the other with emotions.

At last she could see a blurry shape in the distance and as they drew closer, she could see a coastline and a mountain range. Her heart skipped a beat as she recognized he island and Firnen's wings gradually picked up a quicker pace.

She sat watching as the island grew bigger and her heart beat faster. They were both so immersed in the sight that it took them a few seconds to notice the consciousness that was observing them. When they did they both immediately closed up their minds and felt the consciousness recoil a bit. Then the consciousness drew closer gingerly and brushed against theirs but they didn't lower their defenses. After a few more tense seconds the consciousness retreated and they realized that they stopped in midair.

'Is it gone?' Firnen asked as he slowly continued to fly towards the island.

'For now' she said cautiously. 'It's weird! I've never felt anything like that. It wasn't a normal mind that was looking around. This one was watching almost without being seen, as if from the shadows.'

'What worries me is that there's clearly not anyone between us and the island and we're still and hour's flight away from it. Whoever it is, he's very strong.'

'Aye. I wonder if he's friend of foe.'

'Well, whoever this is he didn't attack us.'

'Maybe he was just stopping to get closer to attack or wait for us to get closer?'

'Perhaps' Firnen admitted. 'But even so, I think we can beat him together' he said confidently.

As they drew closer to the island both of them were on high alert, ready to attack or defend on a moment's notice.

'Someone's coming towards us' Firnen told her for he had a better vision. After a minute or two she could see that as well. She readied herself for any one and anything that it could be.

As they drew close to the figure that was flying towards them it was clear it was a dragon with a rider. As they drew even closer she could see a hint of blue and her heart skipped a bit.

She was just about to ask Firnen if he saw the same thing she did when she felt two consciousness's press up against them and she drew into herself.

The consciousness drew back a little but then returned to brush against her mental wall. It was not aggressive, which was a good thing, but she was still weary of letting it into her mind without knowing who it was.

After a few seconds she started to feel that the consciousness was familiar. She tried to place it but couldn't until another flash of blue caught her eye. With excitement and a racing heart she slowly lowered her barriers and asked mentally.

'Eragon?'

Eragon POV

As Eragon and Saphira flew closer to the dragon and rider Eragon tried to rack his brain to see if he was forgetting something, maybe someone was supposed to come and he just forgot. He could feel Saphira racking her brain for the same thing and started to doubt that it was it, she usually remembers stuff he forgets.

They drew closer and he could tell now that it was a green dragon.

'Maybe it's just Eridor?' Eragon asked Saphira, referring to Laetri's dragon. Laetri was a male elf and the fifth one who arrived at the island.

'Could be. This dragon is the same build as he is.'

He then decided to approach the rider with his mind again and was once again shut out. He tried again to approach the rider's mind as Saphira approached the dragon's. Once again he had a feeling that he knows this mind but couldn't quite remember who it was.

After a few moments he felt the mental barriers lower and he was allowed access to the rider's mind. Behind the barriers he met a musical and melodic mind that he recognized immediately and he felt his stomach do a backflip.

He was just about to speak when he heard a musical voice in his mind that he missed so much.

'Eragon?' It was Arya. She sounded unsure but at the same time excited that it might actually be him.

'Arya?' he asked in disbelief.

There were two great roars as the dragons greeted each other and Eragon's ears started to ring a little bit.

'Eragon!'

'Arya!'

They were still a few hundred yards away from each other but the dragons were now flying their fastest to reach each other and in a matter of seconds they were circling each other.

Eragon felt that he was going to faint at the sight of her but it only served to liven him as he drank up her appearance. She was wearing her usual green tunic and leather leggings for riding with her sword Támerlein at her side, just like he remembered. She had her hair tied back for the flight so that it wouldn't get in her face too much. Around her neck was the same necklace she had on Murtagh and Nasuada's wedding more than two hundred years ago and it was as beautiful as he remembered it. She looked good and happy with a big smile on her face and a spark in her eyes.

He wanted to run up to her, to hold her and kiss her, but he could not while they were in the air so he gestured to the island and Arya nodded and they began the way back with their dragons, not taking their eyes off each other for one second.

Arya POV

She looked at Eragon as the dragons circled each other and studied every detail of his appearance.

He had a blue tunic and blue pants that were unfit for riding and she guessed that he didn't plan to take this flight seeing as Saphira wasn't even wearing her saddle. He had Brisinger at his side and Aren on his finger just as she'd remembered. His hair was a bit longer than it was two hundred years ago when he left but she thought it suited him as it whipped around his head in the wind. He had a short beard just like he did when he first came to visit in Alagaesia. The beard reminded her of Brom and she thought it looked really good on him. She looked at his eyes and saw them looking at her with hunger which made her blush a bit. On his lips was a smile, the exact same smile he had two hundred years ago. _Some things will never change_ she thought to herself.

'Do you want them to?' Firnen asked, joy emanating from their bond.

'No. I was merely pointing out a fact.'

She saw Eragon gesture towards the island and she nodded in response, knowing what he wanted for she wanted it too.

They flew in silence for a few minutes, their dragons racing to the island so that they could properly greet each other, but then Arya decided she can't take it any longer and reached out with her mind to Eragon's. When she reached it she found it swirling with excitement, joy and love that flowed back and forth between them through the mental bond they shared. They didn't say anything, there was too much to say and they didn't trust words to convey what they wanted to good enough. Instead they just exchanged images, thoughts and feelings, the most common of which were joy and love.

Eragon POV

It felt like an eternity to Eragon as he sat on Saphira's back and waited for her to reach the coast.

When they finally reached the coast and the two dragons landed on the sand Eragon quickly released the spells he had and jumped off Saphira's back rolling on the sand to soften the fall. While in the past he could have easily jumped off Saphira's back, she was now much bigger and he had to softer the fall to not injure himself, whether it was by magic or with a roll. When he was standing again he looked at Arya who was slowly descending from Firnen's back a few yards away with the saddlebags in her hands. Eragon ran to her and when she was just a foot above the ground reached her and snatched her from the air, hugging her and laughing all the while. Arya was also smiling and looking down at Eragon with pure joy, her saddlebags forgotten on the ground where he caught her. The dragons were already sniffing each other and roaring every few seconds.

Arya was now hugging Eragon back, her legs wrapped around his waist. Eragon lost his footing in the sand and fall backwards with Arya now on top of him. They both laughed hard and then kissed, a long and passionate kiss. When they drew apart they were both out of breath. They looked into each other's eyes for some time. A roar made them look away. The dragons were flying away, sending sand everywhere.

'Have fun!' Eragon said smugly.

'I should tell you the same!' she replied and with that they drew from each other's minds, both wanting privacy at the moment.

He then returned his gaze to Arya and saw her staring at him. He laughed and kissed her again. They rolled around on the beach for quite some time before they slowly drew apart and sat looking at the ocean with their backs to a tree. Eragon had his hand around Arya who was resting her head on his shoulder. He breathed in the salty ocean air and thought it never smelled so good.

"What made you come?" he asked her.

"Are you not happy that I came?" she asked sarcastically.

"I couldn't be happier!" he replied. "But it's not very often that you were able to come and all those times you warned me first."

"Well, I wanted to surprise you, which I obviously did, but I also had another surprise for you that I didn't want anyone to spoil."

That caught his interest.

"Would you tell me what it is now?"

"Only if you ask nicely" she teased and he decided to kiss her again.

"Ok" she said with a smile when they drew apart and she lifted her head from his shoulder to sit facing him.

"I am no longer the queen of the elves" she said jumping to the point.

Eragon didn't believe what he was hearing for a few seconds and stared at her.

"Really?"

"Yes" she said in the Ancient Language. "The elven nation and our forests have been rebuilt to their former glory and so, they have no longer need of me. Seeing as they have no more need of me I decided to step down from the throne and follow what I want to do."

"And what is it that you want to do?" he asked although he knew the answer. She answered by leaning closer to him and kissing him softly.

"I want to spend the rest of my life with you" she said biting her bottom lip.

They were now very close to each other and Eragon could feel her body heat.

"I love you Arya" he whispered.

"I love you too Eragon" she answered.

He then said her true name and felt her tremble. She said his true name in return and he felt his whole body tremble to the sound of it.

As if drawn by an unstoppable force they leaned closer once again and their lips touched once more. Unconsciously Eragon reached out with his mind to Arya's and he was surprised when he felt her do the same. They melded their minds together, sending feelings of deep love and uncontrollable lust and passion, as Arya leaned back to the sand and Eragon followed her down.

They were no longer two different people; they were now two parts of a whole that was finally complete. Eragon kissed her passionately as she ran her hands up and down his chest and back. They were both breathing heavily, fighting for air but refusing to end the kiss.

After what seemed like hours Arya stopped her hands near his neck and started to undo his tunic and he felt his heart starting to race with excitement. When she finished she ran her hands on his exposed chest and sent shivers up his spine. She took off his tunic completely and after a second or two, she rolled and was on top of him. She drew back a little and he opened his eyes to see her looking at him with mischievous eyes that could only mean one thing. She leaned forward and covered his face with her hair that was now loos from its band that fell somewhere on the sand.

This kiss started out softly, their lips barely touching. Arya's hands were once again exploring Eragon's chest and now Eragon's hands were at her waist. Then the kiss deepened and Arya leaned over even more, melting their mouths into one. With one of his hands Eragon reached up to her neck, on the way stopping for some time on her chest.

She smiled into their kiss and then said between kisses.

"Do you…do you have anywhere more… more _private_?"

"There's a tree house not far from here that I use sometimes. We could go there."

"Yes. Let's" and with one final kiss she got up and he followed her. They walked hand in hand for some time on the beach, Arya refused that Eragon put his tunic back on, until Eragon lead them into the forest by a path no one knew but him. When they reached the tree house they climbed up the stairs and went through the door. It was a small house with just a few scrolls and books, some shelves, chairs and a bed.

Arya POV

She looked around the house for a few seconds before she remembered the men next to her. When she did she turned to him and pushed him over to the bed kissing him all the while.

"I missed you" she whispered in his ear and started to kiss his jaw.

"I missed you too" he said and held her. She then pushed him on the bed and didn't even waste a second before she jumped after him and they were right back where they stopped.

She was burning with passion, every touch of his begging for more to follow. Eragon was running his hands all over her body. She couldn't wait any longer, she had to take matters into her own hand, and so she grasped his hands and guided him under her tunic. He explored her bare skin with his hands under her tunic and she marveled at the feeling. Her skin burned at his touch but she couldn't get enough. She ran her hand over his chest, hoping to satisfy her desire, but instead only intensified it. She could feel his strong muscles as she went up from his stomach to his chest and then down again through his arms. Suddenly Eragon grasped the bottom of her tunic and took it off over her head, exposing her skin to the warm spring night air. As she threw away the shirt he looked at her naked body and smiled sheepishly. When she looked back at him she laughed and leaned down to kiss him again. They rolled around on the bed for some more time but then Arya, who was a little bit too enthusiastic, rolled them of the bed and onto the floor. As it happened, Eragon landed on his back with a small "umph" and Arya fell on top of him laughing. He soon joined her in laughing as they continued rolling on the floor.

Eragon POV

The sun was shining through the window and on his face. He stirred in his sleep but couldn't escape the light. With a groan he opened his eyes. He tried to lift his arm to rub the sleep away from his eyes but found that he could not. He looked to his side and saw that the arm in question was buried underneath Arya who was lying next to him, curled up against his side with her head resting on his chest. He thought that the previous day had been nothing but a dream but he was more than happy to find out that it wasn't.

He looked at her for a while before he realized that they were both naked. It didn't embarrass him, it was just surprising.

He remained there for quite some time, just watching Arya pressed up against him, her head rising and falling with each breath that he took. He decided that he liked the way it felt to have her this close to him. She stirred a bit and then slowly woke up. She lifted her head a bit and looked up to see that it was really him. When she saw his face she smiled and with a sigh of happiness laid her head back on his chest.

"Good morning my love" Eragon spoke softly.

"Good morning holder of my heart" she said and kissed his chest.

THE END

**AN:**

That's the end of this story.

It's been really fun to write and I hope that it's also been fun to read!

Thanks to everybody who read and reviewed the story! It really helped and I hope I improved throughout the story! On that note please review and tell me what you thought of the story as a whole! I'd really appreciate it…

So like I was saying at the beginning of the story, I have some ideas about new stories (not fixes like this one) that will take place between Eragon's departure and this epilog, maybe even after the epilog. What kind of stories you ask? Well, things like: visits by Eragon in Alagaesia, visits by Arya in the rider's island (still to be named), the building of Dras abr Garjzla, assignments that Orik gives Murtagh as his vassal and many more! These stories will come eventually but I'm not sure how frequently seeing as the semester's starting in a few weeks and I might want a short brake (however if I don't and find that I have ideas popping in my head I will get right to it).

P.S. If you feel that the ending was not done right and that it's missing something, then tell me. I had another idea how to end it but it seemed better this way…


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